Carthage High School Names Drew Bridges as New Head Baseball Coach

Carthage High School is proud to announce that Drew Bridges has been selected as the school’s new Head Baseball Coach. Coach Bridges brings a strong background in both high-level playing experience and coaching, along with a passion for developing student-athletes on and off the field.

Coach Bridges is a Carthage High School graduate and former professional baseball player in the New York Yankees organization, where he competed from 2013 to 2017. During his time at the professional level, he developed advanced technical skills, gained valuable experience working within structured systems, and built a strong understanding of teamwork and communication under pressure.

Following his professional career, Coach Bridges served as Head Coach for Midwest Nationals Premier Baseball Academy from 2017 to 2020. There, he coached highly competitive high school and youth teams, organized travel schedules, and implemented professional-style practices rooted in his playing experience.

Since 2023, Coach Bridges has been serving Carthage Junior High as a 7th grade science teacher, assistant high school baseball coach, and head junior high boys and girls basketball coach. In these roles, he has demonstrated strong leadership, effective communication with students and families, and the ability to build structured, purposeful practices that help athletes grow and succeed.

Coach Bridges earned his Biology degree from Missouri Southern State University and is committed to supporting students both in the classroom and in competition.

“Taking over the baseball program at Carthage High School is truly an honor,” said Coach Bridges. “I'm incredibly excited to give back to the program that helped shape my own journey, and to share the experiences and knowledge I gained from my playing career. My hope is to inspire and lead the next generation of student-athletes here at Carthage and continue leading this program in a direction that makes the community proud.”

Carthage Athletics and Activities Director Dustin Perkins shared, “First, I would like to thank Coach Kevin Burgi. He has worked tirelessly to revive this program. He has led with passion and hard work. I appreciate all the work he has done to bring pride back to Carthage Baseball. That being said, we conducted a very thorough search to find our next Head Baseball Coach. Drew displayed his passion for leading Carthage baseball from the beginning. The more we talked, it was clear that Drew had a clear vision and plan for our program. He brings a wealth of knowledge and experience that our players will be lucky to draw from. We are excited about the future of Tiger Baseball.”

Carthage High School looks forward to the leadership, experience, and energy Coach Bridges will bring to the Tigers baseball program.