June 10, 2023

By Bob Elliott

Canadian Baseball Network

How does a young woman from Manitoba wind up a coach in one of the most successful organizations in the game?

Well, the directions are similar to that old line when the out-of-towner, lost in Manhattan, the city that never sleeps, asks “how does one get to Carnegie Hall?”

“Practice, practice, practice” is the answer.

And then practice some more.

So, again we ask how does a young woman from Manitoba wind up a coach in one of the most successful organizations in the game?

It always helps to have some heroes to idolize, mentors to help steer the ship, a family of good prairie stock and a little luck.

Hicks (Boissevain, Man.) is listed as a technology associate and coach with the Los Angeles Dodgers rookie-league team in the Arizona Complex League.

Hicks works with all the data collection platforms, such as Hawk-Eye and Trackman, the information gleaned from Dodger games and batting practice sessions ... all the numbers and trends are sent her way. Hicks also does the organization’s important Daily Game Report, which summarizes what happened at each affiliate the night before so everyone in the entire organization -- scouts, coaches, player development and the front office -- are in the loop.

Hired with the intent of becoming an on-field coach, which is why you can see pictures of her in a custom-made coaching uniform Hicks is involved in on-field activities, as well. In 2022, Hicks was in the dugout for the second half of the Arizona Complex League season for as an intern hitting coach.

* * *

Heroes: Everyone has them growing up.

And as they say at the race track, Hicks can ‘really pick ‘em,’ naming off the likes of tennis stars Billie Jean King, Serena Williams and Naomi Osaka, as well as soccer star Megan Rapinoe.

“They are all amazing women in sports who blazed a trail for those who come after them,” Hicks said. “People are standing up for groups that haven’t been treated fairly or equitably in the past and are fighting for change. I admire people who are the first to do things, because that comes with so many unknowns.

“I think that takes an insane amount of courage for someone to do.”

* * *

Family life: Her older brother Zak was hockey player at University of Regina and now coaches with the Neepawa Titans in Man. Her mother Jan is a mortgage broker and her pop Al is a vice principal. He has taught for 32 years while coaching hockey and softball at his school.

Her parents divorced when Hicks was about seven.

“I struggled with that the most growing up,” said Hicks. “We moved around a lot from grades 5-to-12 and that both helped me and hurt me. I was forced to make friends wherever I went so I was more outgoing, more confident.

“I was always OK doing things on my own if needed,” Hicks said. “I struggled with that because I love people. I love being social and building connections with people. It was tough to spend a lot of time with people and having a real bond, and then moving away. I also chose a sport with not many opportunities in Canada.”

And if Hicks wanted to chase her dream -- playing Division 1 softball, it meant a move far away from her family and the places she was comfortable, adding “so at the end of the day, facing those things helped me do that.”

Hicks said her passion for sports and the game comes from how she grew up.

“I have always been a very high energy, excitable person,” Hicks said. “Whatever I was doing, I was all in on doing it. I grew up in dance and played as many sports as I could handle, and my parents were all about letting me be me and not trying to calm me down.

“Now, at 25, I’m still as passionate as I was then and I appreciate my parents for carving out space and letting me continue to be myself.”

* * *

Mentors: One of her favorites to learn from is her father, who has been an educator for his entire life and is a lifelong learner.

“We will get into some deep debates about new techniques or why people learn a certain way and I really like to pick his brain on his experiences in both teaching and coaching,” said Hicks. As well she maintains “am amazing friendship with my head coach (Ben Greer) from playing for the Iowa Western Reivers junior college.”

“I really turned a corner athletically while he was coaching me and I give him all the credit for countless life lessons I picked up playing for him,” Hicks said. “I didn’t know who I was or where I was capable of getting to until he believed in me and saw how much fire I had for sports and my development.”

* * *

The luck of the game: It was a fluke that I fell into sports writing. A friend of my father’s, Cliffy Earl, took me to opening night of the Kingston Baseball Association senior league. My father was joining us 20 minutes later. Cliffy and I watched as KBA president Ken Matthews roamed the crowd down the first base line, the third base line and approached us sitting on the berm in left field at the Cricket Field.

Earl: “For John’s sake, what time does the 6:15 game start Kenny ... it’s 6:20!”

Matthews: “Our scorekeeper passed over the winter .... we can’t start without an official scorekeeper.”

Earl: “Give the book to the kid.”

I was the kid.

That led to a summer job (games Monday, Wednesday and Friday, plus keeping stats, phoning scores into the two radio stations and the TV station and compiling a box score for the Kingston Whig-Standard for $100 a season in 1964 … Thought I was a millionaire). Had I waited and arrived 20 minutes later I wouldn’t have wound up working for a newspaper.

Hicks has a better story. Much better. A you-never-know-who-is-watching story. Her father had plans to go to the annual baseball tourney with the Boissevain Centennials, the senior team in her town (Population: 1,656 in 2016).

“I actually lucked into playing baseball,” said Hicks. “I grew up playing softball, playing since I was six years old and went to college to play. In the summer of 2018, I was home spending time with my family. .

“The manager (Corey Billaney, recently inducted into the Manitoba Baseball Hall of Fame) also my high school volleyball coach and my dad’s childhood friend, asked if my brother and myself wanted to come along also. They were short players so I said yes, but my brother had other plans.

“We get there, I’m playing right field in the first game and I grounded out and came back to the dugout. There was a Team Manitoba coach (Marc Bissonnette, who coached under manager Jeremy Culleton) talking to my manager. He asked about me, where I played and if I would be interested in playing for the Women’s Provincial Team.”

Just like that.

“I talked to him a little after the game,” Hicks said, “then went to a couple practices and played for them every summer since. Now, I play on the Women’s Baseball National Team and work in pro ball ... all because someone was watching the right diamond at the right time.”

As the late Roger Craig would have said: “Humm baby.”

* * *

Glory days: At Iowa Western, Hicks was named to three different All-America teams, including NJCAA (first team), NFCA (third team) and Fastpitch News, as a sophomore.

As a freshman, Hicks was selected to the All-Region XI team as the ICCAC offensive Player of the Year. And pitching, Hicks was 16-5 with a 2.69 ERA and 130 strikeouts, leading the team in batting average (.488), doubles (24) and RBIs (71). Hicks was also a two-time first team Academic All-Region honoree.

After transferring to Tech from University of Buffalo, Hicks started 42 games for Tech before breaking her leg in a win over Texas-El Paso. On the season, Hicks batted .269 with 32 hits, including four doubles, a triple and 35 RBIs. At the NCAA regional, Hicks had three RBIs in a win over Southeast Missouri State and drove in four in a win over Toledo.

Besides playing baseball for the Canadian Women’s Team, Hicks played softball at Louisiana Tech and earned a spot on the C-USA Commissioner’s Honor Roll. Hicks started all 24 games during the season, batted .344 with 22 hits in 64 at bats, with two doubles and two homers.

* * *.

Best day on the ball field: That came when Louisiana Tech knocked off the Auburn Tigers early in 2019, shortly after Hicks transferred to Louisiana Tech in their first tournament of the year.

“After grinding for two years at Junior College, I was the starting first baseman for a Division 1 team,” Hicks said. “I hit an RBI double, scored the game-winning run and was involved in what felt like six double plays in the infield.

“I pitched to one batter in the seventh and we came away with a 2-1 win. It didn’t seem like much at the time, but beating a Power 5 team, while playing a major role in the win felt so good.”

* * *

Wheat City (Brandon) days: Hicks played second base for the Wheat City Whiskey Jacks against men in the summer collegiate Expedition League in Brandon in 2021.

“For me, it’s was more reps on the diamond and more eyes on my swing,” says Hicks. “If I am working out with my teammates and they see little tweaks I can make, that just makes me 10 times better. So, competing against them is one thing but having those different guys that bring different experiences to the table, that’s what’s been the biggest progresses for me.”

Hicks, who was hitless in 11 games (23 at-bats) and knocked in three runs, said that the main difference was the intensity between the two games.

“In softball, you have to be dialled in from the first pitch to last and you have to ramp it up,” Hicks said. “Baseball is more skill-focused. It’s slower-paced and you can focus on your breathing. So, the challenge for that is staying locked in the whole game.”

After her last game for Wheat City, Hicks signed a contract with a softball team in the Netherlands. Her biggest takeaway from her time with the Whiskey Jacks?

“People who say ‘a girl can’t do that’ or ‘women can’t compete in men’s leagues,’” Hicks said. “Those are not the people who understand the ins and outs of sports. There’s not a single person, I don’t think, in that entire league that looked at me and said ‘she can’t be here’ or ‘she can’t do this.’

“They watched me play and thought ‘oh she’s a baller’ like anyone else out there.”

* * *

Coaching: Hicks has a love affair with coaching.

“I have had so many amazing coaches throughout my life and I wanted to give back as much as I could,” said Hicks, who has worked kids camps since age 16 and coached at facilities in my off-season in both Winnipeg and Calgary.

“I went back to Tech after I graduated to coach for a little bit before I got my gig here with the Dodgers. I’m working my way to a specific role with the ACL team, but right now, my label is simply ‘Coach.’ I originally wanted to be a hitting coach, but I have been more involved as a first base and infield coach. We will see where that goes.”

* * *

Hobbies or passions besides baseball: If this was a question on a job application, it might be left blank. Hicks has never really had any hobbies outside of baseball/softball.

“Lately, I have gotten into reading and thrift shopping,” said Hicks, who also hosts and produces a podcast on Women in Sport called “More Than 5%.”

“The goal with that is to bring more attention and be able to highlight the stories that are missing from sports media,” Hicks said. “We’ve been able to talk with pro athletes, National Team athletes, massage therapists for big-league teams, Olympians, CEOs and a TSN reporter etc.”

* * *

Biggest obstacle to overcome: Hicks is a hard marker saying “Imposter Syndrome.”

“Being in such an amazing job, it’s really hard to wrap your brain around it, every day, I come to work and see pro athletes, coaches who played in the big leagues, famous people and it’s hard to always stay grounded,” Hicks said. “I struggle with feeling like I belong here and I bring value.

“I have worked with amazing people that always treat everyone the same but it is within my own brain that I struggle to feel like I belong. I try to remind myself that everyone has different experiences and every single one brings value, but I think imposter syndrome is such an important thing to talk about.”

We asked Will Rhymes, the Dodgers’ director of player development, who said that Hicks is working in cages with the hitters in Arizona.

“Zoe is doing great,” said Rymes. “The landscape of coaching has changed over the years. The doors are open to high school coaches, college coaches. Basically coaching hitters in baseball is the same as coaching hitters in softball. Or in golf. Basically all the swing coaches teach in a similar way.”

We asked Ashley Stephenson (Mississauga, Ont.), Canada’s best from the Canadian women’s team -- first as a player, then as a coach -- about Hicks.

“I don’t know Zoe overly well,” Stephenson said. “I have been around her for just over a year and we only get together for one week with the Women’s National Team, but I will say this ... Zoe’s energy and passion are easy to see and would be an asset to any organization. Her enthusiasm for learning is exactly what you want in a young coach.”

The Blue Jays recognized what a talent Stephenson was and hired her to coach with the class-A Vancouver Canadians.

“I know she’s still figuring out where she wants to be in the world of baseball,” Stephenson said. “The Dodgers are having her try different roles to see what’s best. I’m not sure yet she knows where she wants to land, but I think the fact that they are letting her try different roles within player development is awesome.

“I wish more young female coaches had the opportunity she’s being given.”

Rhymes said he was involved in the hiring process.

“Zoe is open minded, curious and we love her personality,” he said. “This woman is far from an imposter.”

Zoe Hicks belongs.