WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. — The old saying goes, when life gives you lemons make lemonade. Kirk Cabana is an example of setting a goal and reaching that goal despite the odds.


What You Need To Know

  • Kirk Cabana played baseball for Piedmont College in 2019

  • He appeared in 23 games at the age of 31

  • Cabana was named an assistant coach in 2020

  • Cabana will be the head coach of the Carolina Disco Turkeys in 2021

Cabana takes full responsibility for the lemons in his life, and his path to the Piedmont Triad almost happened years ago.

Cabana says he had a full scholarship to attend North Carolina A&T as a kicker for the Aggies football team coming out of junior college in 2007. With a few classes left to complete, Cabana says,"Just self sabotage, stopped going to classes, starting hanging out with friends too much, started making every excuse in the book for who's fault it was except mine."

The California native says he started to work for his family's pest control company before he started wanting more in life.

Cabana enrolled at Citrus College and played one year of baseball before transferring to Piedmont College in Winston-Salem.

When Cabana lined up to play for the Bruins, he was 31 years old. Playing in 23 games, he had a .192 batting average with 7 RBI and a .852 fielding percentage.

His plan didn't include making the major leagues but to accomplish other dreams.

"Go to community college for one year, play baseball for two years, getting my degree, going back as a grads assistant at whatever school I go to hopefully, work hard enough for two years that they'd want to entrust me to keep me around for two more years," Cabana says.

That's exactly what happened. Cabana became a grad assistant after playing only only year and was promoted to a full time assistant coach for the former Piedmont College, which is now named Carolina University this season.

The dream got even larger when the new collegiate wood-bat team in Winston-Salem announced that Cabana would be the head coach.

The name of that team is the Carolina Disco Turkeys, and they'll begin playing at Truist Stadium in downtown Winston-Salem this summer.

Cabana just wants to help kids not make the same mistakes he did.

"Affecting as many people as I possibly can in a positive manner, that want to get the best out of themselves, because that's all I'm trying to do, help some guys avoid the same pitfalls that I walked into," Cabana says.

The example of Cabana's hard work in making his dreams come true and turning lemons into lemonade.