It’s obvious that Art Senato can’t get enough baseball.  

     The Marcus head coach – who was recently named Coach of the Year on the Dallas Morning’ News’ All-Area Team – snuck away to Oriole Park at Camden Yards on Sunday to watch the Orioles host the Washington Nationals. Even amongst screaming fans and hot dog vendors, Senato still picked up a ringing cell phone to talk even more baseball.

    “I’ve never been here before, it’s pretty neat,” Senato said. “I’ve been getting texts and talking to the guys and they’ve congratulated me on it (coach of the year). I just tell them that it’s more of a team award for me. I’ve never won anything as big as this, but I feel I’m more rewarded by how far the team goes in the playoffs. I’m proud of them.”

     Senato is one of several highlights on this year’s list. Marcus pitcher Tyler Carter was named to the first team after claiming Pitcher of the Year for District 6-5A. Teammate Michael Gill was second team All-Area. Guyer pitcher Brad Kottman was also a first team selection.

    Overall, 32 athletes graced the annual list – which was headlined by Waxahachie’s Colton Cain (Player of the Year).

    Success seemed to follow all these athletes, and many feel the same can be said for Senato. Last year, he guided Mansfield Summit to a 23-9 record and their first-ever district title. They advanced to the playoffs for the first time, where they eventually lost to El Paso Socorro.

    Before that, he had stints at Desoto and Arlington Bowie. In two years at Desoto, he took the program from a 5-9 record to 7-7 and missed playoffs by one game. In his second season at Bowie, the Volunteers had their best finish ever in baseball, posting a second place finish in district play. 

    This past season, the Marauders reached the 5A regional finals for the first time in school history.

     “I’ve coached a lot of good players over the years and I just try to make them realize just how good they can be,” Senato added. “I don’t think I do anything special, I just think I’ve had a lot of great players to work with.”

     He did get the most from Carter, who went 11-3 in his senior season with a 2.04 ERA and 87 strikeouts. The same can be said for Gill. Gill was huge during this year’s playoff run. He was named Dallas Morning News Player of the Week after going 3-for-4 against Plano only to come back and throw a shutout in Game 1 against Plano East in the next round. He also hit a homer in the same game. Gill went a combined 4-for-8. Against Odessa in the regional semifinals, he went 3-for-4 with a home run in Game 2 while allowing just three hits on the mound in a six-inning run rule win to sweep the series.

     “I’ve talked to both of them and they both deserve it,” Senato said.  

    Not to be forgotten, Guyer’s Brad Kottman won 12 games in 4A and led the Wildcats to the playoffs for the first time in school history. Kottman batted .512 in district, but his contributions were most felt on the mound. He was instrumental down the stretch in securing at least a co-district championship. In their season finale, he gave up two runs on four hits in a 4-2 win over Denton Ryan – avenging his team’s 4-2 loss to the Raiders back on April 3. He was a perfect 9-0 in district and carried a 1.33 earned run average into the postseason.

     In playoffs, he threw 114 pitches in a 10-2 drubbing of Granbury in the area round, then came back and almost got out with a win over Arlington Heights. Heights, however, scored seven runs in the sixth inning to take the lead for good.