SEAN BOSTON
Hutch Post
HUTCHINSON, Kan. — For the Krol brothers, baseball has never just been a game. It has been the family language, the setting of their childhood, and the legacy of a father who spent three decades molding high school athletes and four state championship teams.
On Friday, that legacy will echo louder than ever across Hobart-Detter Field, where Mace, Noah and Adam Krol will each lead their respective high school teams in a unique three-team baseball triangular, probably the first-ever of it's kind in state history.
Hutchinson (10-9), coached by Mace, the youngest of the three, will host Andale/Garden Plain (10-8), coached by Adam, the oldest, and Haven (14-6), led by middle brother Noah.
The event begins with Hutchinson vs. Andale/Garden Plain at 2 p.m., continues with Andale/Garden Plain vs. Haven at 4 p.m., and concludes with Hutchinson vs. Haven at 6 p.m.
All three games will be video streamed on Hutch Post.
The game fell in place after the KSHSAA voted to allow up to 26 games on the schedule, meaning more teams playing teams they may have not ever played in a 20-game schedule.
“It just kind of came together,” Noah said. “We were already playing Andale. I don’t know if it was Mace’s idea or Adam’s, but someone said, ‘Why don’t we all just play each other?’ It made too much sense not to do it.”
Mace puts it more simply: “I think they were already scheduled, and I just kind of snuck my way in.”
Baseball from the beginning
The roots of the Krol coaching tree stretch deep into central Kansas soil. Their father, the late Rich Krol, was one of the most accomplished and respected prep baseball coaches in Kansas history. In 30 years at Nickerson High School, Rich led the Panthers to four state titles (1989, 1990, 1993, 2002) and was posthumously inducted into the Kansas Association of Baseball Coaches Hall of Fame in 2022.
His influence extended far beyond the dugout.
He taught metal shop and psychology, coached football, girls basketball, boys basketball and baseball.
“But it was the relationships he built with players that always stood out," Adam said. "That’s what we try to do now, connect with the kids and build a team identity.”
The boys grew up immersed in that world. Summers were spent as bat boys, shagging fly balls and absorbing the game from the dugout. Their childhood memories were filled with evenings at Hobart-Detter, where their dad coached the Hutch Colts, and early mornings helping prep the field for weekend tournaments.
“I remember mowing the field at 2 a.m. with Tommy Garcia just to get the field ready for a tournament the next day,” Adam said. “We were always around the ballpark.”
For Noah, the memories are a sensory experience. “I remember walking through the front gate and smelling pipe tobacco from the old American Legion guys. John Fogerty’s ‘Centerfield’ playing over the loudspeakers, it’s just ingrained in your head.”
Each brother eventually pursued his own playing career: Adam played at Barton Community College, Noah played at HutchCC and Wichita State before a five-year stint in the Tigers and Pirates minor league systems, and Mace played at HutchCC, Nicholls State and Fort Hays State.
But no matter where they went, baseball always brought them back home.
Coaching paths, same foundation
The three brothers each now lead programs shaped by the foundation their father laid. Adam coached Hutch High for six seasons before leaving Kansas for a coaching position in Republic, Missouri. He returned this season to take over Andale/Garden Plain, motivated by a desire to be closer to family.
“We were missing birthdays, Easters, Sunday dinners, just all the things that make us who we are,” Adam said. “We needed to be back where we belong.”
Noah is in his third season at Haven, following a successful run as a player.
Mace, now in his third season as the head coach at Hutch High, teaches physical education and has taken on the challenge of leading the same program his brother once helmed.
Despite their coaching differences, they all share the same feeling about how this season has gone so far.
“If I were to guess for all three of us, I’d say we all think we should be better than we are,” Noah said.
“I’d concur,” added Mace. “We’ve underperformed. Friday is a chance to right some wrongs.”
A familiar fan in the stands
One person who won’t miss a pitch Friday is their mother, Diana Krol, who has attended thousands of games and remains one of the most vocal fans you'll hear.
“It’s been a long time since I’ve been to a game and not heard my mom yelling, usually at the umpires," Mace said.
“And it’s not just the umpires," Noah said. "She yells at me, Adam, Mace, the players and anyone. Everyone’s fair game.”
“She’s well-known around the state,” Adam added. “She won’t know what to do with herself, watching all three of her sons at once.”
While their mother’s voice will surely be heard, one thing from their father’s coaching days will largely remain in the past: the “Texas Mau Mau” pig Latin-style signal system he famously used at Nickerson.
“That was a Nickerson thing,” Noah said. “I don’t use it. One of my assistants tries to now and then, but I think it should stay there.”
“There might be a moment Friday where I yell something in Mau Mau just to mess with my brothers,” Adam joked.
Mace, who has Jim Walker on staff, said the code occasionally makes its way into conversations. “Coach Walker throws it out all the time, but I haven’t taught the players. Sometimes I’m glad they don’t understand what he’s saying.”
Brothers and competitors
When the first pitch is thrown Friday afternoon, nostalgia will take a backseat to competition. The Krols know what’s at stake, bragging rights among brothers.
“I’ll definitely try to beat my brothers,” Adam said. “Especially since I’m the oldest. Getting beat by either one of them wouldn’t sit well.”
For Mace, the youngest, the triangular is more than just another game.
“I’ve pretty much gotten my butt kicked by my brothers my whole life,” he said. “This would be a great chance to change that.”
Full circle at Hobart-Detter
Friday’s setting is fitting. Hobart-Detter Field, recently renovated with new turf and batting cages, is where so many Krol memories were born.
“I’ve played there, coached there, worked on the field,” Adam said. “To come back and coach there with both my brothers on the same day, it’s really special.”
For Noah, it’s about more than just baseball. “It’s a return to where it all started. This field is part of who we are.”
The tri will stand as a tribute, not just to the brothers, but to the father who shaped their paths, the mother who never stopped cheering, and the game that continues to bring them together.
Youth Night at Hobart-Detter
Any youth baseball/softball player can wear their favorite jersey and receive free admission with a paid adult.
