About

Our Philosophy

We select youth baseball players who we think will be able to play at the next level, be that youth Majors or high school varsity or college and professional. The goal is to make these players competitive at the appropriate level. In order to be competitive, players must put in time of their own in improving their skill level. If you are willing to devote time each week to improving your skills, be it hitting, base-running, fielding, pitching, catching, etc., then this is for you. You will be selected because you have shown something that we think will translate into a baseball player. You have to become competitive by working on your game. Some of you will have the tools plus the developed skills to become elite players. Whether you are elite, competitive or select the goal is to get better.

Our coaches are among the best at recognizing talent and coaching the skills of the game. You must want to be part of the program in order to optimize what the coaches bring to the party. The teams will not be democracies, there will be no votes cast. The player fee does not buy you the right to vote, it buys you a spot on the roster and the experienced coaching. The coaches will lead and expect you to follow. If you are willing to take direction and put in time on your own to develop your baseball skills, this is the place to be. If you have a high level of commitment to success and a high level of commitment to the leadership we will provide, being a part of the Dallas Mustangs is the place for you.

Meet Our Coaches

Dallas Mustangs History

The Dallas Mustangs were formed in 1986 to provide a place to play for some 17-year-olds I had been fortunate enough to coach from the time some of them were 9 until they reached 17. In 1986, there was no place for these guys. The only program in the DFW area was the Dallas Police Association (DPA). They were a team comprised of the All-Area players as selected by the local newspapers. They played in a league with 3 other teams comprised of varsity, junior varsity and freshmen teams from Lake Highlands. The landscape was bare, American Legion ball had died out and there was no place to go. Two other coaches, Pat Rigby and Folsom Bell, who had coached all the original Mustangs at younger ages, joined me in putting together a team and then appealing to others, mainly dads with coaching experience, to form teams so we could have a league. We wound up with five teams.

The first year was a good year, 29-9, and the next year, 1987, we hit a bit of magic. All the youth baseball at the time was AABC (American Amateur Baseball Congress) where teams would win a league and qualify for a state tournament. If they won the state tournament, they qualified for a regional tournament. If they won the regional, they could advance to the World Series in their age group. Some of these youth World Series were in Puerto Rico, Waterbury, Connecticut and Battle Creek, Michigan. DPA had advanced to the 18-and-under AABC World Series in Farmington, New Mexico, for several years running, winning it once. The magic of 1987 came when the Dallas Mustangs went through the process, defeated DPA and Cherry Creek, Colorado, in the Regional to advance for the first time to Farmington and the Connie Mack World Series. That was an eye-opener and a game changer. Pat Rigby, after we had been there a couple of days, turned to me and said “Carp, we got to get a lot better”.

Through Pat’s hard work and keen eye for talent, we were able to do that in fairly short order. Over the next 17 years, we returned to Farmington 16 more times and were able to win the World Series in 1990. 1995 and 1996. About 5 years in, Pat took his keen eye for talent and a great ability to bring joy to all around him to scout for the Texas Rangers. A heart attack shortened his life and robbed a couple of generations of players of knowing him but he was instrumental in getting the Mustangs not only going but excelling.

The initial goal of helping players get to the next level that was the foundation of the first team remains the goal today. We have been blessed with an abundance of talent over the years including 15 first round selections in the MLB draft, over 225 players in professional baseball and almost all our players playing college baseball. What is even more important, these guys have become first responders, teachers, coaches, lawyers, doctors and most important of all, good citizens, good husbands and good fathers.

The Dallas Mustangs are a 501.c.3 non-profit that challenges and develops young men to realize their highest God-given potential not only in baseball but in their careers, communities and family life.