Maxx Kinsella finally got a break in 1956. The longtime pitching coach in Rookie League ball was promoted to Irontown's Single-A affiliate in Lincoln with the Gunboats. The promotion meant a full season to work with his pitching staff... no more abbreviated seasons in the low minors.
Here's a blurb courtesy the Lincoln Journal Star's extensive online archive:
Lincoln Lands New Pitching Coach
January 17, 1956
LINCOLN -- The Gunboats are hoping the arrival of pitching coach Maxx Kinsella brings with it improvement in its pitching staff. Kinsella, a pitching instructor in the Irontown farm system, has been promoted from the Lintz League to oversee Lincoln's staff.
"A lot of it is luck, having the right mix of players on your roster," Kinsella conceded in a phone interview from his native Irontown. "But you also have to make the most of what you have on your team. Can I turn Joe Blow into Stormy Boyd? Probably not. But I can sure try, and hopefully make him a better pitcher."
Kinsella is the father of 2-time All-Star pitcher Buck Kinsella, a starter for the Appaloosa Arrows. The younger Kinsella says his father had a lot to do with his success.
"He's a great coach," Buck Kinsella said by phone from Tropico as the Arrows arrived for Spring Training. "He knows exactly what buttons to push to get the most out of you. I think he'll make a great big league coach some day."
For now, Maxx Kinsella will have to earn his stripes in Lincoln. He inherits a pitching staff that hasn't posted an ERA below 4.00 in five years.
"I'm up for the challenge and anxious to get going."