Gary Sprague

A Teacher First Gary Sprague

Former high school baseball standout Jim Zimmerman, now middle-aged and known to everyone as Coach Zim, is the most successful high school coach in state history and a favorite history teacher. After being unexpectedly fired from his coaching job by the school principal, a former teammate still harboring jealousy from high school, Coach Zim is offered a dream position with the Red Sox organization. While pondering whether or not to take the job. he finds himself helping a student who is being bullied and discovers that, inconceivable as it might seem, his work as a teacher may be more important than coaching baseball. Filled with memorable characters, including a steroid-popping gym teacher who can't stop flexing and a tough Vietnam veteran assistant coach, A Teacher First is the story of a man coming to terms with the effect he has on the lives of his students.