Remembering Marty Kinard Sr.: Son says dream was reviving baseball in Orangeburg

Kinard passed away June 17 at age 62 due to an extended illness, but his mark on the game continues to linger with those having played with him and for him.

Pallbearers at his funeral included former Orangeburg-Wilkinson teammate Herm Winningham and Brent Snell, who played a large role in helping Kinard’s St. George American Legion teams to back-to-back state tournament appearances.

Winningham, who was a year behind Kinard at O-W, said baseball was quite big in Orangeburg when they played in the late ’70s.

“It was the thing you did in the summer,” Winningham said. “I watched (Marty’s) work ethic, he was a leader. He didn’t talk a lot, but you could just tell he was going to be good. He did all the little things after practice, he had focus and talent.”

Kinard helped lead Orangeburg-Wilkinson to the 1978 Class 4A state championship game. The Bruins came up short of the state title, falling to Summerville.

“I felt so bad after that game,” Winningham said. “Those seniors (Marty included) had worked so hard, and the game was the same day as their graduation. We played the game in the morning then came back to Smith-Hammond-Middleton (gymnasium) for their graduation.”

Kinard’s son, also named Marty, never got the opportunity to see his father play but remembers hearing stories of his time with O-W and American Legion Post 4.

“I remember everyone saying he had a great curveball,” Kinard said. “The best they had ever seen.”

The younger Kinard, who went on to play collegiate baseball at Claflin and coach softball at his alma mater and Coker College, said he knew his father more as a coach and mentor.

Kinard Sr. coached American Legion baseball for both Orangeburg Post 4 and St. George Post 105. He led Orangeburg to the state tournament in 1996, and guided St. George to the state tournament in 2002 (led by New York Yankee outfielder Brett Gardner) and 2003.

“He was a player’s coach,” Kinard Jr. said. “He liked to joke around and have fun, but when it was time to play, it was all business. He loved to win, but he hated to lose. He would have rather not play than lose.”

“He loved the game of baseball,” Winningham said. “He wanted to teach younger players the right way to play the game.”

Kinard said he sees a lot of his father in the way he coaches his teams.

“He always had the best interest for his players, and went above and beyond for some of them,” Kinard said. “His players meant everything to him. He had some good years in Orangeburg and it means a lot when you have people express how much he meant to the city and its baseball programs.”

Kinard said he and his father often discussed ways of regrowing the game in Orangeburg.

“He did a lot for the city of Orangeburg, and it was always his dream to get (baseball) back to where it was (when he played and coached),” Kinard said. “He asked me about it all the time, but it takes a whole community.”

Kinard talked about the Orangeburg River Hawks Baseball Club that was helped in formation by Emmanuel Wright in 2017. The group helps develop skills of Orangeburg youth players between the ages 9 through 16.

“I always tell (Wright) that whatever he needs from me, I’m here,” Kinard said. “We have tons of athletes in Orangeburg, and I think it can get back to where it was. Right now, we’re going through the stage of not having the players currently playing.”

Kinard recently returned to Orangeburg, where he accepted a job with Orangeburg Prep. He will help coach football this fall and is scheduled to be the head softball coach in the spring.

“I plan to be here a while,” Kinard said. “They just built a new facility (off North Road), and once you have teams winning, the interest will come. It was one of my dad’s dreams to have Orangeburg back winning baseball games. We have to get the talent back, get more youth involved and I want to be a part of that.”