Sports Persons of the Week - Lacassine Cardinals Baseball

Lake Charles, LA (KPLC) - Lacassine Baseball is headed into its sixth year as an organized team, and just a few years into its existence Hurricane Laura came through SWLA destroying their facilities. That didn’t stop the Cardinals though one bit. The school would hire Blake Trahan as their new head coach, and just a year into leading the team, he has them believing they can be special.

“I was blessed to come here and be around these kids, man. I didn’t have to come here and get these kids working hard. They were ready to do that. I kind of just had to point them in the right direction and since then they’ve responded, and we’re full throttle ahead at this point” said Coach Trahan.

Trahan is a baseball legend in the SWLA community. The Kinder High School graduate went on to play college baseball for Louisiana-Lafayette, and at the school was named a 1st team All-American. He then went on to get selected in the third round of the 2015 MLB Draft by the Cincinnati Reds. After a 10-year professional career, Trahan decided to retire with the goal to give back to the community that he came from.

“You know most ball players when they finish their career, that’s what they want to do...they want to get around the youth, and you know we’re blessed to have gained a little knowledge playing a game for so long, so it’s good to give that back, but it’s been fruitful for me, and I’ve enjoyed it to the fullest,” Coach Trahan stated.

As the team prepares for a new season, Trahan believes in the foundation that has been built too far in the short amount of time he has had with his players.

“I feel like we have a good foundation. I feel like we’ve continued to build and get better work on skills, but also, you know, trying to change the culture a little bit. You know baseball here, it was seen as kind of a hobby, and I think these guys are starting to take it seriously, and we’re going to be the best we can at it. We’re going to work hard at it and these guys are doing that, and I’m excited to be around them.”

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