“It’s really a very rewarding life,” he said. “It’s a chance to help kids, see the world and do what you love to do.”
Even if everyone calls you Spanky?
“When I was at Georgia Tech (as a pitching coach), some of the players had watched the Little Rascals and thought it was the funniest thing ever,” he said. “Once they found out Spanky’s last name, that was it. You know how once you don’t like a nickname, it sticks.
“I share no traits with Spanky at all,” he insisted. “I don’t even have a he-man woman haters club.”
He could run a pitchers lovers club, though. McFarland is the author of a book titled “Coaching Pitchers,” which has sold more than 40,000 copies.
“That’s how I kind of made my mark,” he said. “When you come up through the ranks, you have to decide which side of the ball you are on. The pitching thing seemed to fit for me.
“I had a pretty good high school coach (Bob Davis at Tecumseh). He was a big influence on my life. It’s always a good thing to get started in a good program.”
The 1972 Tecumseh grad was all-conference in three sports for two years and went on to play at Hillsdale College.
“It was there where I hurt my arm,” he recalled. “But it turned out to be a blessing. When you had an arm injury, you learn a lot about arm mechanics. Even though it ended my chances of playing, it did jump-start my career as a coach.”
Among 11 big-league pitchers McFarland has coached were All-Star Kevin Brown and former Yankees pitching coach Dave Eiland.
“When you get a guy like him, the best thing I did was not to over-coach him,” McFarland said of Brown. “We tweaked a couple of little things. But most of it was Kevin Brown. I was just fortunate enough to have worked with him.”
Having a hand in a big-league career is the ultimate.
“I can’t lie, it is a special feeling when one of your guys make it to the big leagues,” he said. “But it’s just as important that they get that degree and go on and have a good life.”
McFarland, who is heavily involved in the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, has coached 34 years total. So it’s not easy to visit his parents “Easy” Ed and Imy McFarland, who still live in New Carlisle. But he doesn’t expect to stop coaching anytime soon.
“I’m not the greatest of coaches,” he admitted. “But after 34 years out there, I’ve learned a thing or two. I have gotten sneaky good. If I ever write an autobiography, that’s what I’ll call it, ‘Sneaky Good.’”
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