Don Karnes

Don Karnes started the baseball program at Baxter Springs High School in 1981 and never had a losing season in 25 seasons of coaching. During that time, he won 81% of his games. His teams had a 28-game winning streak in 1985-86 and a 27-game streak in 1991-92.

The Lions won state championships in 1985, 1991, 1992, 2002 and 2003. Karnes was 434-105 at BSHS and sent 44 players on to college baseball, along with three who played professionally.

Karnes was 4A Coach of the Year three times and 3A Coach of the Year once. In 1986, he was named the outstanding baseball coach in the state of Kansas by the National Federation of Inter-Scholastic Coaches Association. He coached in the East/West All-Star game for four years and was a finalist for the 1997 American Baseball Coaches Association Coach of the Year award.

In 1982, Karnes started the American Legion program in Baxter Springs. In 1999, he donated twelve acres of property toward a stadium complex and was the driving force behind building the “Field of Dreams” on Route 66 in Baxter Springs.

Karnes also coached girls’ basketball at Baxter Springs High School for 17 seasons, averaging 16 wins a season.

In 2023, Karnes was inducted into the Kansas Association of Baseball Coaches Hall of Fame.