Chris Wido enters his fifth season as head baseball coach at Morton College. Under Wido’s leadership, the Panther program has produced record-setting numbers both on and off the field.
The Panthers have won 129 games over Wido’s first four years as head coach, good for third all-time in program history. Baseball's 32 wins in Wido's first season were the most by any first-year head baseball coach in Morton College history. This successful first year was then followed by tying the program's single season record for wins with 35 the following year, before ultimately breaking that record with 37 wins in year number three. Back-to-back 30-win seasons had never been done before in program history, let alone three consecutive.
Wido's second season in 2023 featured Morton College’s most explosive offensive unit since the early 1990s, which featured a top-10 squad nationally in eight different offensive categories. The team held fifth-place finishes in team batting average (.356), RBIs (505), runs scored (552) and hits (650). The Panthers were also sixth in doubles (135), seventh in slugging percentage (.563), ninth in on-base average (.455), and 10th in home runs (74). That offensive success continued the following year in 2024, where MC ranked tenth in hits (598), third in doubles, (139), seventh in XBH (206), seventh in batting average (.353), and ninth in slugging percentage (.546). Offense has certainly been Wido's calling.
While the team success came first in 2023, the individual awards later followed. Wido had helped Miguel Cantu to become Morton College’s first NJCAA All-American player in program history, the same award he would go on to repeat the following year. Cantu was named the Skyway Conference’s Most Valuable Player in 2023, the first Panther to be honored since 1995. In addition, shortstop Thomas Schroeder was the recipient of a Region IV Gold Glove and the Region IV Defensive Player of the Year. Wido has also overseen two other defensive superstars, with outfielder Luke Ulbert winning a Region IV Gold Glove in 2023 and outfielder Denham Kozy winning a Region IV Gold Glove in 2025.
The Panthers have also been a big hit in the classroom, earning an ABCA Team Excellence Academic Award in four straight years since Wido has taken over. Baseball has also been recognized as an NJCAA Academic Team of the Year the past two seasons as well. 31 baseball players have recorded a perfect 4.0 grade-point average since Wido's tenure began, with 55 receiving NJCAA All-Academic honors.
"I'm extremely proud of what our guys have done in the classroom," Wido said. "Academics are very important. For me, it's not just about the baseball stuff. My goal is to set our players up for future success. By not making grades a priority, we're short-changing them."
This is Wido’s 10th season overall associated with the Morton College baseball program. He previously spent five years as an assistant coach before moving to the driver’s seat. Between both positions, Wido has helped over 80 baseball players move onto four-year schools. One of Wido’s biggest goals is to continue to find four-year schools for those interested in playing at the next level.
Wido, a product of St. Charles North, played for Gene Rausch at Morton College in 2013 and 2014, earning all-Skyway Conference honors both seasons and the Morton College Foundation’s Chico Carrasquel Scholarship in 2013. After Morton College, he continued both academically and athletically at Chicago State University, where Wido received a bachelor’s degree in psychology. He has since earned a master’s degree in sports leadership from Concordia University Chicago.
Wido previously had head coaching experience with the Windy City Prospects in the Metro Collegiate League for three seasons. He also served as a Midwest area scout for the Southern Shores Professional Baseball League, an independent professional league based in North Carolina.
