Mike Warren made an impact on a lot of lives during his 35 years coaching baseball.

This past week those efforts were repaid. Warren was listed among four people headed to the Kansas Baseball Hall of Fame. 

Warren will be inducted the first Saturday in February as part of the Class of 2016. He will be joined by fellow coaching legend Gene Stephenson and players Nate Robertson and Billy Hall. Also headed the Hall will be the 1965 Wichita Rapid Transit Dreamliners team.

Joining the 2016 inductees that day will be Kansas City Royals General Manager Dayton Moore. Moore was elected in 2014 but was not able to be at the ceremony so he be inducted on Feb. 6 as well.

Warren made his mark on baseball in Kansas during his time at Barton. He spent 30 of his 35 years as a coach at Barton. During his tenure at Barton, Warren won more than 900 games. During his entire career including stints at Pratt and Dodge City, Warren finished with a mark of 1001-740.  

During his playing days, Warren helped Winfield High School to a state title in 1972 then was part of Emporia State’s third place finish at the NAIA Championships.

It is a class that Coach Warren knows well. He watched the Dreamliners play while growing up in Winfield. He coached Nate Robertson’s brother Matt at Barton. He coached against Billy Hall while Hall was at Butler County. He coached against Gene Stephenson’s brother Phil in the Jayhawk Conference and has known Gene for many years.

Nate Robertson attended Wichita State and played eight seasons in Major League Baseball, mostly with the Detroit Tigers. Hall walked on at Wichita State after his playing days at Butler and turned into an All-American second baseman.

Gene Stephenson coached 36 years at Wichita State, winning more than 1800 games and leading the Shockers to the College World Series seven times, winning it in 1989.

The induction will take place at Noon, Feb. 6 at the Drury Plaza Hotel in Wichita.