Losing? NO CHANCE of That in Knoxville
Zane Chavez is a former pro baseball player who has traveled all over the U.S. and to 5 different countries in his career. So what made him decide to settle in Knoxville and open up a training facility for aspiring young athletes? Zane answers these...
Zane Chavez is a former pro baseball player who has traveled all over the U.S. and to 5 different countries in his career. So what made him decide to settle in Knoxville and open up a training facility for aspiring young athletes? Zane answers these questions and more in this episode of ConnectTheKnox. Tune in to learn the role No Chance HQ has had in multiple marriage proposals, why Zane feels the networking opportunities in Knoxville are an untapped resource, and the future plans for No Chance HQ’s baseball training facility.
Highlights:
00:00 Intro
00:35 Zane describes how he came to Knoxville by way of his lifelong baseball career
05:10 What about Knoxville stood out to Zane amidst all his travels, and why he decided to settle here
07:35 Zane tells the story of how the No Chance baseball cap has played a role in multiple proposals
08:46 Ad - Dr. Joe Chiro
09:36 What Zane thinks of the biggest misconception he hears about Knoxville
12:18 Zane’s thoughts on the value Knoxville’s networking opportunity presents to the younger generations
16:23 The types of training that Zane offers at his facility in Knoxville
20:33 Ad - Just Homes Group
21:08 Zane fields Julia’s lightning round of questions about his favorite Knoxville spots
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Transcript:
Julia: Hey everybody, welcome to Connect the Knox. I’m your host, Julia Hurley. Today’s guest is one of my all-time favorite baseball players, Zane Chavez. Zane, thank you so much for being with us today.
Zane: You got it. Anytime.
Julia: Absolutely. Well, I am super excited that you’re taking time out of your day for us here in the Knoxville Tennessee market. I’ll see you got your Tennessee flag back there. Thank you so much for repping the UT Vols. Hey, Zane, let’s start this whole thing off with, tell us, you’re—basically, just tell us your whole life story. Where’d you come from? Where did you grow up? How did you end up in Knoxville, Tennessee?
Zane: So, I’m originally from San Diego, California. Played baseball my whole entire life. I was drafted out of high school. I did not sign out of high school. I went on to play junior college, Division One Baseball, and then NAIA Baseball.
And then I started my professional career in independent baseball. So, I did that for four years. It’s gonna be a lot of baseball stuff. I went down to Nicaragua for a winter to play winter ball. And then I came back to the states and then that’s when I signed with the Baltimore Orioles at 26 years old.
Made the high all-star team that year. Got hurt with an oblique injury. That kind of set me back that year. Came back the next year in Double-A with the Orioles. So, I played two years with the Orioles, in the Orioles organization.
They released me. I went back to independent baseball for two years, actually got released in independent baseball, and then started doing, like, Uber Eats in Dallas, Texas, where I was living at the time. The manager of that, of who I got released actually called me back and wanted me back that year, so we negotiated me going back down there. So, I went back down there to Laredo, Texas, actually, and then actually made the all-star team there for that year. And that was my eighth year of pro ball.
I decided that was—I played eight years I got to play in affiliated baseball with the Orioles, so I was going to hang them up. And then that winter, the Pittsburgh Pirates ended up calling me and purchased my contract. I was 30 years old. Didn’t think I had shot at going back to play affiliated baseball, so I said heck yeah, let’s go. Went up to Double-A that year. We won a championship that year.
And then they released me, the Pirates released me after that year. So, I finished in independent baseball. And at that time, that’s when I was like, okay. I had always wanted to open a baseball facility or be around kids, train kids, and do that whole aspect. I had started the brand No Chance in 2011 And it was a term that we used in the clubhouse, like, “You can’t beat me kid. No chance.”
And we ended up getting the championship series that year. It was the best of five. We went up to St. Paul, Minnesota, for two games and we lost two games, so we were down 0-2 going back to Grand Prairie, Texas—which is basically, like, Arlington and Dallas-Fort Worth area—and we won three games in a row to win that championship series that year. So, it was a great, great year. Awesome group of guys.
And then after that season, I love graphic design. That term had stuck with me so I just started throwing it on t-shirts and hats and stuff and carried the brand kind of as a hobby throughout the minor leagues in a, “You can’t beat me. No Chance,” mindset as we’re all chasing the major leagues. So, I did that and then I trademarked ‘No Chance’ and I trademarked ‘Let’s Chase it’ because I believe that we’re all chasing something in life, greatness, happiness, success, all that stuff. So, ended up playing nine years and that’s when I moved out here in Knoxville, Tennessee. Best decision of my life.
Was out here training kids and then after about four years of bouncing around and training kids here and there in facilities and stuff like that, we wound up finally opening our own facility. So, we have an 8000-square-foot facility here in Knoxville, Tennessee. We now have six travel ball teams, and we do camps, clinics, and everything like that, and in the middle. Last thing, and I’ll let you out ask the next question. So, after about three years of retirement, when I was out here, I got an opportunity to play baseball overseas in Europe, and that was awesome.
It was a two-week tournament. It was a little vacation, brought the family, got to play baseball again. And then I came back here to the States and kind of still had my itch to play. So, I hit it up an Australian guy on the team that I played with and all my buddies that have played ball always said, Australia, if you get a chance to go down there go, it’s the best. So, hit him up, like, “Hey, mate, you got a need for a catcher, first baseman down there?”
And he said, “Yeah.” We worked something out. And I went, I got the opportunity to go down to play in Australia for four months. So, that was something I always wanted to do was say that I played ten years. I had nine years and I had retired for a couple. So, now I can say I played ten years of pro ball, traveled to over five countries, five, six countries, and played ball. So yeah, now I’m here doing what I love. And now we have facilities.
Julia: I love that story. I think that is one of the better stories that we’ve heard. And we interview so many people who’ve ended up in Knoxville, Tennessee, as their living place, like, the end result of all of the culmination of everything. And one of the questions I always ask is, how is Knoxville different? Like what makes Knoxville the place that you want to come and raise your family? Like why is Knoxville or what about Knoxville so special?
Zane: So immediately, I had lived in Dallas for probably six years, the most time away from—moving away from San Diego. So, I got to travel the entire United States, from Texas to Florida to the East Coast, Midwest, and everything like that and Knoxville gave me the home vibe that I grew up with in San Diego, California. We ca—it was a small town on the very tip of North County of San Diego. It was in the hills, we had lots of curvy roads, about 25 minutes from the beach. So, this kind of gave me everything that I grew up with and that home vibe.
You got the river that runs through here, so I get the water feel that I had growing up. Like, you can feel how there’s the water that’s close, so you always have that kind of escape to be on water. And then the mountains are just amazing out here. And that’s how I grew up. California, you can go surfing in the morning and you can go snowboarding at night, or you can go surf in the morning or you can go out to the desert at night.
There’s no desert out here, but it gave me the vibe of where you’d want to raise a family and really the home vibe. And it’s a big little city and it feels safe here. And honestly, I’m very, very thankful that I found this place and it’s home now. I had opportunities to leave, but after training kids, I’ve had so many kids I train, I couldn’t leave them, and I mean, I’ve built so many great relationships here in the community. It’s just been one of the best—or the best decision I made in my life to end up somewhere.
Julia: That is so awesome to hear. So, many pro athletes are here. And I think one of the biggest things about Knoxville is that nobody has a clue how accessible training from an actual athlete is. And they’re all over Knoxville. I mean you are one of the better facilities that we’ve seen.
Our baseball tickets are literally right in the middle of thirteen of the kids and their families that you train. So, as we’re watching the baseball games, all the parents are talking about you and talking about No Chance baseball, and every single family member that’s around there is like, “Who are you getting with?” So, the entire baseball stadium by the end of the season last season was like No Chance baseball, No Chance baseball. So, word does get around this big, small town because it is still so intimate. I’ve heard a rumor that several people have gotten engaged wearing the No Chance baseball cap. Tells me this story.
Zane: Well, the first one was a guy that I met in independent baseball in Arlington, Grand Prairie DFW area. And he just posted a picture of him on his knee, and I was like no way. He’s rockin’ one of my very first No Chance hats. And what was funny is, I hit him up. Number one, I was like, “Dude, nice, and no chance she’s going to say no, right, because she’s staring at it right in her face.”
And the second one is Joe, your husband. So, I was like well okay. This is a—
Julia: [laugh].
Zane: —he has one of my favorite ones with the camo with the orange. And we did that logo because there’s—everyone loves to hunt out here. So, what’s funny is, I tried to bring the Cali vibe, San Diego vibe, beach five into, like, flat bill snapbacks, and then I kind of made an adjustment to how I designed out hats a little bit and said, “All right. These guys like camo out here and they like their orange and obviously the Vols.” So, it was pretty cool. And I’m very—it’s exciting, it’s cool to see that, dang, they actually rock that hat. And I know some of them are getting old, so—the hats—but they still rock them, so it’s cool.
Julia: I think you should put an engagement section on your No Chance website of just engagement announcements, and just make sure that everybody gets to post it on the No Chance website. I think that’s hilarious. When you had sent us a message, like, “You’re wearing my hat.” I was like, “We are. That’s amazing.”
Zane: Yeah. That was great. That was awesome.
Julia: It was pretty great. It was pretty great. All right, next question. What do you think is the biggest misconception that other people outside of this area have about Knoxville?
Zane: I think it’s, some people don’t—some people like big city life, maybe. I don’t. And I’m just going to—I kind of relate kind of cities now to LA and San Diego, like, where San Diego is more of a chill vibe more, and LA is really uppity and fast-paced. And don’t get me wrong, San Diego is a big city, but it’s just a beach vibe there, and it’s—and then I moved to Texas, and then I kind of related Dallas more to LA and then Fort Worth, kind of, to San Diego at the time. They’re both big cities, but you kind of feel a vibe.
And then for here I felt like Nashville to Knoxville was that same: Nashville to LA, tons of everything. And then Knoxville is a smaller, big city. You know, I prefer a Knoxville area. I mean, it’s a great col—I mean, people say it’s a college town, but it really is. But there’s so much other stuff outside in the community that makes it, you get everything.
I mean, it’s not like you just go and it’s just college, you know? I’m saying there’s tons of other things to do here that makes it actually a very great city that has everything. And it’s not just labeled as a college town because there’s so much other things to do like camping and hiking and boating and fishing. Really, I don’t think there’s any, for me—I mean, no misconception if you’re asking me. Like, it’s a no-brainer if you want to move here. So, that’d be my answer.
Julia: Yeah. We have a lot of people that are just like, oh, “It’s super hick-y,” or, “That’s in the south, and they’re in the middle of nowhere.” And they think that Dolly Parton is serious when she tells jokes. And they think that that we’re all kind of like that. And I think it’s really funny, the drawl of our accent, they’re like, “Eh, they’re kind of stupid.” And I’m like, “You know, I really wish you would visit.” And I’d encourage people to visit because every person that I’ve ever had visit wants to stay.
Zane: Yeah. I a hundred percent agree. And it’s not like we’re out in the middle of nowhere. We’re actually not. I mean, everything’s pretty close. So, if you relating everything else to other cities, you can get places in 30 minutes here, which is phenomenal.
And the traffic is super low. Which I had a cousin that just came out here a couple of weeks ago, and they’re thinking about moving from New Mexico. And she asked me the same questions. Like, “Why here?” And I was like, “I just flew back to some other bigger cities and there’s traffic everywhere.”
So, I spent—I mean, you could be—anytime, at least in San Diego or even Dallas now, it’s going to take you 45 minutes to an hour to get to one place. Here it’s not that way, I mean. And, like, you say, hicks and stuff like that, but it’s really not. It’s… this a small city. It’s a beautiful city. It’s growing. I mean, you have the Vols here, which is amazing. You have the Double-A Cubs organization with the Smokies out here. So, it’s not. It’s not anywhere near that. There’s a lot of things happening here that are really neat. And it’s… I mean, it’s great. I would—I love it here. I mean.
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Julia: One of the biggest things that we’ve had in the Knoxville market just as a whole—and of course that surrounds all of Knoxville—is that Knoxville, Tennessee, Maryville, Tennessee, Loudoun County, Tennessee, are all retirement communities. A lot of lakefront land, a lot of lakefront property, and we’ve attracted over the course of I don’t know, since 2003, really, being ranked as, like, number one or number two in the country with which to retire. Basically, outside of Ocala, Florida, this is it. And we’re starting to see younger people flocking to the Knoxville, Tennessee, market because now you can work from home, we’ve got great internet, we’re affordable, we have things to do, but we’re not retaining the talent and the young people here that are from here. They are all leaving. What would you do or what do you think that people could do to attract a younger generation of people to stay and raise their families?
Zane: Well, I think it’s—the younger generation is, I wouldn’t say, moving towards more minimalistic things, but I mean, you see all the small houses and things like that. I mean, if there’s that group of people that likes small things and stuff like that, I mean, I’ve seen plenty of people, building tiny homes and creating little communities themselves, or making those glamping places like that, I think for the younger—and they might not just be educated enough. I mean, they might not be educated enough on what opportunities they can actually do here when they come here. And I don’t think that’s not a good enough reason to leave because there’s—if you know one person or you’re trying to meet one person, well guess what? You talk to your friend, and they probably know that person.
And if you want to get an opportunity to do what, actually, you love, you’re one person away. So, just like in baseball. Like, I may not know everyone in baseball, but I’m one person away from them knowing. It’s like, “Oh, hey, do you know him?” He’s like, “Yeah, dude. I played with him.” So like, the networking opportunities here, I feel like, are great.
And I mean, just knowing, like, someone like yourself, if I wanted to do something, if I wanted to be a woodworker or anything like that, or if I wanted to go into IT or whatever, I mean, I would just hit up Julia. That way, she knew where to point me in the right direction. Like, what do you want to do with your life? Like, you know, okay, then I’ll put you in contact with someone that can build a career for you here. And I think that’s something.
And I think, like, younger people, and maybe their communication skills aren’t that great and maybe they’re timid to go out and ask or network or anything like that. I think that there’s way more networking opportunities that, if people just search them out, and found that it’s more of a, this is actually where you want to be, you know? People are great here, they’ll give you the shirt off their back to help you. And that’s one of the main reasons why I stayed here, too, is like, no one’s just going to say, hey, and then just leave you. You know what I’m saying?
I have plenty people’s—if I need to borrow a trailer, like, “Hey, man, can I borrow your trailer?” “Yeah, dude. Like, go ahead, borrow my trailer.” It’s just a great community and there’s not a lot of that out there. You know, everyone’s kind of to themselves in other places, I feel like. And I know that if I hit up someone here, if I hit up one of my parents from a kid that I trained, they’re like, “Yeah, let me help you. Let me help you. Let me help you. Let me help you.”
And honestly, with the culture that we’re building here in No Chance, I mean, a lot of parents come up afterwards and they’re just so thankful that the way we train their kids, how we’re building them into young men, they’re like, “What can we do? How can I help you? What do you guys need? Can I even, like, can I help you clean? Can I help?” And it’s like, it’s a great community here. And once you dive into it and you really want to actually grow a family, and you want to do things here and spread your wings, it’s really, really possible because everyone knows each other.
So, that’d be my answer. I mean, it’s a lot easier, I feel like, to make it here than it would be possibly to go somewhere else just because there’s so many more dots to connect other places. And the way of life is a lot faster, I’d say, in a San Diego or California so, like, you got to keep up with people’s schedules in other places to where, you know if—I mean, it’s—and I think something like that goes back to traffic and there’s just so many people in other places, that you come here, your phone call away, and they’ll actually call you back or they’ll actually meet you because it’s close in proximity and it’s not too far to drive as well.
Julia: And that’s a really good point. Our traffic has gotten a little worse over the last couple of years, but still nowhere near as bad as anywhere else we go. So, I used to be able to make it to Knoxville in about 15 minutes. Now, it takes me 30. If I were in Atlanta, I would not even make it out of the airport in 30 minutes. So, putting that into perspective, Knoxville is a pretty fantastic place to be, honestly, at the end of the day. All right. Tell us about the UK flag hanging in the back up there I just now noticed. Is this all the colleges that you’ve sent kids to or is this just—what is this?
Zane: This is where—yeah, I’ve trained some of the guys here that have gone on to go there and then Kole Cottam right there, he is with the Red Sox; I had to represent him. And I did not put it all up in any specific order. Tennessee happened to go on top though of Kentucky, so sorry about that, but—
Julia: You’re like, “I’m not saying that I helped you win. But—” [laugh].
Zane: And then over here we have some of the countries that I’ve played in over there. So, we’re going to add a few more.
Julia: That’s awesome.
Zane: Just represent the culture. And at least in baseball, there’s not a lot of other countries here in Knoxville, so that’s what’s cool about this facility is we actually have some culture from outside the states training here. We got the Aussie flag back there because we had an Australian guy come in a few months ago. So yeah, just creating a culture.
Julia: That’s awesome. That’s awesome. All right, tell us a little bit about—so if the kids and the parents in Knoxville—or anywhere they are really because they can bring their kids, you travel—tell us about the, like, the types of training that you do, what you offer, how people can find that about you.
Zane: So, we have travel teams, baseball travel teams, that we only specifically focus on high school age, possibly 14, but we want to focus on the older guys right there. We offer strengthing, conditioning here. We do one-on-one training, we do group training, and then we’re getting into—we’re building a little field out back so that we can actually provide baseball development and not so much half an hour lessons—excuse me—half an hour lessons to where we actually teach the game of baseball. They can find me on @nochancehq on Instagram, and then nochanceHQ on Facebook. And then our website is nochancehq.com.
And for that, I mean, we live in a town that we have to play against the elements and against the weather, so growing up in San Diego, it was beautiful all year round, so we could actually get on the field all the time. So, some of the best, at least, per capita baseball players come from warmer regions because they can get on the field more, so their baseball IQs are higher. So, that’s what we’re trying to do is change the culture here that, you know, we can provide a service that we not only do the training, the hitting inside, but we also teach the game of baseball outside. And that’s the best way to learn is on the field. So, that’s something that I’ve been trying to do for the past three to four years here is to be able to get that field.
And it’s an infield, so I mean, that’s all we really need right now for development with bunt coverages and first-and-thirds and ground balls and showcasing and stuff like that. So yeah, we’re just trying to teach the game more because the IQs, at least in this town, are down. And I honestly correlate that to not being on the field as much, you know? And I mean, that’s how you get better at baseball. It’s the most difficult game to get better at in the world. So… such a mental game that, you know, we need to be on the field, that way they can fail on the field in those elements, as opposed to failing all the time inside.
Julia: That’s a really good way to look at it, pretty much for every sport that you can think of. And people from up north just so happen to be better at hockey because they’re indoors all the time because it’s freezing outside, so the only sport that they really get to play all the time is hockey. So, if anybody in the South wants to compete in hockey, which Nashville has done well, but just recently here with the Preds, your kids grow up playing the sport that their outdoors create for them. So, that actually makes a lot of sense. How’s that going? How’s the field coming along?
Zane: Good. We’re looking at, we’re actually going to start a little model or marketing plan to raise some money to actually donate into the field. We’re looking at just getting used turf on the field, that way the rain doesn’t slow us down at all. I know once now it’s going to start raining a little bit more, so that’s always an issue. There’s not enough baseball fields in Knoxville to actually host and handle all the practices and games and tournaments because there’s not enough turf fields.
And we don’t have a complex that has multiple baseball fields on it made of turf. So, a lot of fields that you have to rent here play on the dirt and that always is an issue in the fall and early spring because I mean, you get washes or wash-outs, rain, and it cancels tournaments, it cancels middle school games and that’s a big issue. So, we’re trying to put some used turf out there, that way we can at least, you know, get on the field as much as possible.
Julia: Sure. So, anybody watching this that has used turf, any of the college campuses that take theirs up, anybody just got it, baseball teams, whatever it is out there if you need to contact them or they need to contact you, go to @nochancehq. So, I think that that is an absolutely fantastic idea. I know Farragut is probably one of the biggest baseball high schools that we have in the area. Very big baseball-oriented high school, so I think that that would be something that maybe some of the parents watching can assist with.
And once you put that campaign together, come back and let us know. We’ll add that website and donation link. You know, as I always do, I’ll share anything that you share with me. I always want to support your growth. I think you’re fantastic. So, I really appreciate all of that. We’ve got five minutes left and I want to do a fire around of random questions about Knoxville. So, I always start off: favorite restaurant?
Zane: Chivo.
Julia: [laugh]. It’s so good. It’s so good.
Zane: Lakeside Tavern.
Julia: Oh, Lakeside Tavern’s made it three times so far. What’s your favorite thing on that menu?
Zane: The strawberry chicken salad. Yeah, Katie brought it home one night [unintelligible 00:25:43] school. So, I get that all the time.
Julia: It’s very good.
Zane: Yeah, the Buffalo [unintelligible 00:25:49].
Julia: Oh, that’s delicious. I just finally learned how to make that myself on a TikTok video. I had to figure it out. It’s so good. It’s still not as good as theirs but it’s still pretty gosh darn good. Favorite bar, pub, or brewery? Or all three.
Zane: Phew. Not that I can’t choose; I just haven’t been to the bar brewery in a while. I like—well, when I was living in South Knox, Alliance down there, Alliance Brewery down there on Sevier Avenue, I liked that little strip right there. They got a good thing going down there with the breweries down there.
Julia: They really do. South Knoxville is growing quite a bit. It’s very impressive. So, where are you at now? West Knoxville. So, what’s your favorite thing to do in West Knoxville?
Zane: West Knoxville? Well, we have Carl Cowan Park right across the street, so Katie and I like to bring our two golden retrievers over there and run around and the dogs both jump off the dock now, so we just like bringing the dogs over there to the park. When my buddies come out or when my buddy comes out from East Knox, he always goes and fishes over there for catfish. So, down there at Concord is a great fishing spot that he goes out there and sometimes I’ll tag along because he’s on the hunt for the biggest catfish in Tennessee. So.
Julia: You should probably just take him to a Calhoun’s, during, like, game—right after game day where everybody throws their bread off of the thing. There’s catfish everywhere.
Zane: Oh, I’ll let him know that, actually.
Julia: Yeah that’s a huge one. Calhoun’s has all the catfish that come around there. They [unintelligible 00:27:24] have those little catfish feeders. It’s a very interesting dynamic that Calhoun’s has there. Yeah, it’s very interesting. All right. What is, in your opinion, the best-kept secret that you’ve discovered about Knoxville that every time you tell your friends about it, that’s, like, the thing?
Zane: I mean, one of the very first thing that I heard was the tailgating for Vols football game. So, I don’t know if it’s a kept secret, but these people here go nuts for Vols football or baseball. Any sport here with the Vols. So, I mean, I don’t think it’s a secret, but I mean… and I have not yet thrown on the checkered suspenders and stuff like that, but these people get crazy. I mean, you saw the game the other day against Alabama and everything like that.
So, it’s a… people have to experience a football game here and the vibe and the energy and stuff like that. I mean, I believe it’s one of the biggest stadiums in the world. So, you just got to come out and experience that. And they have great concerts there, too. So, they get some good names in there.
Julia: So, in the history of you playing baseball, have you ever seen people tailgate for a baseball game?
Zane: Yeah.
Julia: So, that’s normal? Because when we started that last year at UT it was the first time we had ever done tailgates for baseball.
Zane: Yeah. Any professional game, everyone’s tailgating in the parking lots and stuff like that. That’s why you see probably fights go on inside stadiums at games because everyone comes in a little bit hammered. So.
Julia: See at UT, we just throw mustard bottles, just [laugh]. All right, anything extra that I haven’t talked about that you want people to know about Knoxville?
Zane: If you play baseball or softball, definitely come check us out. This is the place to be honestly. I mean, I’ve traveled all around the world, all around the states. You don’t have to—you get all the seasons here of weather. I think that’s really neat. It’s not just hot all the time or 70% a year. Although this past summer was pretty hot, but—
Julia: It was warm.
Zane: We’re rolling into fall. You know you’ll get your snow a little bit here. The leaves change colors here, so it’s really a very beautiful year of weather. And yeah, like I said, play baseball, softball make sure you come here. No Chance HQ and we’ll take care of you whatever you need defense, hitting, speed, agilities, and yeah we’re—this is where to be.
Julia: It is. Zane, thank you so much for spending time with us today. We appreciate everything that you do for Knoxville and all the talent and time and energy and positivity that you bring our way. Joe and I are so excited for you and Katie to bring your very first child into the world. We are super excited for your growth and your future. Knoxville, if you need Baseball and Softball Training, this is the only person that I can refer you to. And if that’s something you need, we’re here to Connect the Knox. Bye, everybody.
Julia: Hey everybody, welcome to Connect the Knox. I’m your host, Julia Hurley. Today’s guest is one of my all-time favorite baseball players, Zane Chavez. Zane, thank you so much for being with us today.
Zane: You got it. Anytime.
Julia: Absolutely. Well, I am super excited that you’re taking time out of your day for us here in the Knoxville Tennessee market. I’ll see you got your Tennessee flag back there. Thank you so much for repping the UT Vols. Hey, Zane, let’s start this whole thing off with, tell us, you’re—basically, just tell us your whole life story. Where’d you come from? Where did you grow up? How did you end up in Knoxville, Tennessee?
Zane: So, I’m originally from San Diego, California. Played baseball my whole entire life. I was drafted out of high school. I did not sign out of high school. I went on to play junior college, Division One Baseball, and then NAIA Baseball.
And then I started my professional career in independent baseball. So, I did that for four years. It’s gonna be a lot of baseball stuff. I went down to Nicaragua for a winter to play winter ball. And then I came back to the states and then that’s when I signed with the Baltimore Orioles at 26 years old.
Made the high all-star team that year. Got hurt with an oblique injury. That kind of set me back that year. Came back the next year in Double-A with the Orioles. So, I played two years with the Orioles, in the Orioles organization.
They released me. I went back to independent baseball for two years, actually got released in independent baseball, and then started doing, like, Uber Eats in Dallas, Texas, where I was living at the time. The manager of that, of who I got released actually called me back and wanted me back that year, so we negotiated me going back down there. So, I went back down there to Laredo, Texas, actually, and then actually made the all-star team there for that year. And that was my eighth year of pro ball.
I decided that was—I played eight years I got to play in affiliated baseball with the Orioles, so I was going to hang them up. And then that winter, the Pittsburgh Pirates ended up calling me and purchased my contract. I was 30 years old. Didn’t think I had shot at going back to play affiliated baseball, so I said heck yeah, let’s go. Went up to Double-A that year. We won a championship that year.
And then they released me, the Pirates released me after that year. So, I finished in independent baseball. And at that time, that’s when I was like, okay. I had always wanted to open a baseball facility or be around kids, train kids, and do that whole aspect. I had started the brand No Chance in 2011 And it was a term that we used in the clubhouse, like, “You can’t beat me kid. No chance.”
And we ended up getting the championship series that year. It was the best of five. We went up to St. Paul, Minnesota, for two games and we lost two games, so we were down 0-2 going back to Grand Prairie, Texas—which is basically, like, Arlington and Dallas-Fort Worth area—and we won three games in a row to win that championship series that year. So, it was a great, great year. Awesome group of guys.
And then after that season, I love graphic design. That term had stuck with me so I just started throwing it on t-shirts and hats and stuff and carried the brand kind of as a hobby throughout the minor leagues in a, “You can’t beat me. No Chance,” mindset as we’re all chasing the major leagues. So, I did that and then I trademarked ‘No Chance’ and I trademarked ‘Let’s Chase it’ because I believe that we’re all chasing something in life, greatness, happiness, success, all that stuff. So, ended up playing nine years and that’s when I moved out here in Knoxville, Tennessee. Best decision of my life.
Was out here training kids and then after about four years of bouncing around and training kids here and there in facilities and stuff like that, we wound up finally opening our own facility. So, we have an 8000-square-foot facility here in Knoxville, Tennessee. We now have six travel ball teams, and we do camps, clinics, and everything like that, and in the middle. Last thing, and I’ll let you out ask the next question. So, after about three years of retirement, when I was out here, I got an opportunity to play baseball overseas in Europe, and that was awesome.
It was a two-week tournament. It was a little vacation, brought the family, got to play baseball again. And then I came back here to the States and kind of still had my itch to play. So, I hit it up an Australian guy on the team that I played with and all my buddies that have played ball always said, Australia, if you get a chance to go down there go, it’s the best. So, hit him up, like, “Hey, mate, you got a need for a catcher, first baseman down there?”
And he said, “Yeah.” We worked something out. And I went, I got the opportunity to go down to play in Australia for four months. So, that was something I always wanted to do was say that I played ten years. I had nine years and I had retired for a couple. So, now I can say I played ten years of pro ball, traveled to over five countries, five, six countries, and played ball. So yeah, now I’m here doing what I love. And now we have facilities.
Julia: I love that story. I think that is one of the better stories that we’ve heard. And we interview so many people who’ve ended up in Knoxville, Tennessee, as their living place, like, the end result of all of the culmination of everything. And one of the questions I always ask is, how is Knoxville different? Like what makes Knoxville the place that you want to come and raise your family? Like why is Knoxville or what about Knoxville so special?
Zane: So immediately, I had lived in Dallas for probably six years, the most time away from—moving away from San Diego. So, I got to travel the entire United States, from Texas to Florida to the East Coast, Midwest, and everything like that and Knoxville gave me the home vibe that I grew up with in San Diego, California. We ca—it was a small town on the very tip of North County of San Diego. It was in the hills, we had lots of curvy roads, about 25 minutes from the beach. So, this kind of gave me everything that I grew up with and that home vibe.
You got the river that runs through here, so I get the water feel that I had growing up. Like, you can feel how there’s the water that’s close, so you always have that kind of escape to be on water. And then the mountains are just amazing out here. And that’s how I grew up. California, you can go surfing in the morning and you can go snowboarding at night, or you can go surf in the morning or you can go out to the desert at night.
There’s no desert out here, but it gave me the vibe of where you’d want to raise a family and really the home vibe. And it’s a big little city and it feels safe here. And honestly, I’m very, very thankful that I found this place and it’s home now. I had opportunities to leave, but after training kids, I’ve had so many kids I train, I couldn’t leave them, and I mean, I’ve built so many great relationships here in the community. It’s just been one of the best—or the best decision I made in my life to end up somewhere.
Julia: That is so awesome to hear. So, many pro athletes are here. And I think one of the biggest things about Knoxville is that nobody has a clue how accessible training from an actual athlete is. And they’re all over Knoxville. I mean you are one of the better facilities that we’ve seen.
Our baseball tickets are literally right in the middle of thirteen of the kids and their families that you train. So, as we’re watching the baseball games, all the parents are talking about you and talking about No Chance baseball, and every single family member that’s around there is like, “Who are you getting with?” So, the entire baseball stadium by the end of the season last season was like No Chance baseball, No Chance baseball. So, word does get around this big, small town because it is still so intimate. I’ve heard a rumor that several people have gotten engaged wearing the No Chance baseball cap. Tells me this story.
Zane: Well, the first one was a guy that I met in independent baseball in Arlington, Grand Prairie DFW area. And he just posted a picture of him on his knee, and I was like no way. He’s rockin’ one of my very first No Chance hats. And what was funny is, I hit him up. Number one, I was like, “Dude, nice, and no chance she’s going to say no, right, because she’s staring at it right in her face.”
And the second one is Joe, your husband. So, I was like well okay. This is a—
Julia: [laugh].
Zane: —he has one of my favorite ones with the camo with the orange. And we did that logo because there’s—everyone loves to hunt out here. So, what’s funny is, I tried to bring the Cali vibe, San Diego vibe, beach five into, like, flat bill snapbacks, and then I kind of made an adjustment to how I designed out hats a little bit and said, “All right. These guys like camo out here and they like their orange and obviously the Vols.” So, it was pretty cool. And I’m very—it’s exciting, it’s cool to see that, dang, they actually rock that hat. And I know some of them are getting old, so—the hats—but they still rock them, so it’s cool.
Julia: I think you should put an engagement section on your No Chance website of just engagement announcements, and just make sure that everybody gets to post it on the No Chance website. I think that’s hilarious. When you had sent us a message, like, “You’re wearing my hat.” I was like, “We are. That’s amazing.”
Zane: Yeah. That was great. That was awesome.
Julia: It was pretty great. It was pretty great. All right, next question. What do you think is the biggest misconception that other people outside of this area have about Knoxville?
Zane: I think it’s, some people don’t—some people like big city life, maybe. I don’t. And I’m just going to—I kind of relate kind of cities now to LA and San Diego, like, where San Diego is more of a chill vibe more, and LA is really uppity and fast-paced. And don’t get me wrong, San Diego is a big city, but it’s just a beach vibe there, and it’s—and then I moved to Texas, and then I kind of related Dallas more to LA and then Fort Worth, kind of, to San Diego at the time. They’re both big cities, but you kind of feel a vibe.
And then for here I felt like Nashville to Knoxville was that same: Nashville to LA, tons of everything. And then Knoxville is a smaller, big city. You know, I prefer a Knoxville area. I mean, it’s a great col—I mean, people say it’s a college town, but it really is. But there’s so much other stuff outside in the community that makes it, you get everything.
I mean, it’s not like you just go and it’s just college, you know? I’m saying there’s tons of other things to do here that makes it actually a very great city that has everything. And it’s not just labeled as a college town because there’s so much other things to do like camping and hiking and boating and fishing. Really, I don’t think there’s any, for me—I mean, no misconception if you’re asking me. Like, it’s a no-brainer if you want to move here. So, that’d be my answer.
Julia: Yeah. We have a lot of people that are just like, oh, “It’s super hick-y,” or, “That’s in the south, and they’re in the middle of nowhere.” And they think that Dolly Parton is serious when she tells jokes. And they think that that we’re all kind of like that. And I think it’s really funny, the drawl of our accent, they’re like, “Eh, they’re kind of stupid.” And I’m like, “You know, I really wish you would visit.” And I’d encourage people to visit because every person that I’ve ever had visit wants to stay.
Zane: Yeah. I a hundred percent agree. And it’s not like we’re out in the middle of nowhere. We’re actually not. I mean, everything’s pretty close. So, if you relating everything else to other cities, you can get places in 30 minutes here, which is phenomenal.
And the traffic is super low. Which I had a cousin that just came out here a couple of weeks ago, and they’re thinking about moving from New Mexico. And she asked me the same questions. Like, “Why here?” And I was like, “I just flew back to some other bigger cities and there’s traffic everywhere.”
So, I spent—I mean, you could be—anytime, at least in San Diego or even Dallas now, it’s going to take you 45 minutes to an hour to get to one place. Here it’s not that way, I mean. And, like, you say, hicks and stuff like that, but it’s really not. It’s… this a small city. It’s a beautiful city. It’s growing. I mean, you have the Vols here, which is amazing. You have the Double-A Cubs organization with the Smokies out here. So, it’s not. It’s not anywhere near that. There’s a lot of things happening here that are really neat. And it’s… I mean, it’s great. I would—I love it here. I mean.
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Julia: One of the biggest things that we’ve had in the Knoxville market just as a whole—and of course that surrounds all of Knoxville—is that Knoxville, Tennessee, Maryville, Tennessee, Loudoun County, Tennessee, are all retirement communities. A lot of lakefront land, a lot of lakefront property, and we’ve attracted over the course of I don’t know, since 2003, really, being ranked as, like, number one or number two in the country with which to retire. Basically, outside of Ocala, Florida, this is it. And we’re starting to see younger people flocking to the Knoxville, Tennessee, market because now you can work from home, we’ve got great internet, we’re affordable, we have things to do, but we’re not retaining the talent and the young people here that are from here. They are all leaving. What would you do or what do you think that people could do to attract a younger generation of people to stay and raise their families?
Zane: Well, I think it’s—the younger generation is, I wouldn’t say, moving towards more minimalistic things, but I mean, you see all the small houses and things like that. I mean, if there’s that group of people that likes small things and stuff like that, I mean, I’ve seen plenty of people, building tiny homes and creating little communities themselves, or making those glamping places like that, I think for the younger—and they might not just be educated enough. I mean, they might not be educated enough on what opportunities they can actually do here when they come here. And I don’t think that’s not a good enough reason to leave because there’s—if you know one person or you’re trying to meet one person, well guess what? You talk to your friend, and they probably know that person.
And if you want to get an opportunity to do what, actually, you love, you’re one person away. So, just like in baseball. Like, I may not know everyone in baseball, but I’m one person away from them knowing. It’s like, “Oh, hey, do you know him?” He’s like, “Yeah, dude. I played with him.” So like, the networking opportunities here, I feel like, are great.
And I mean, just knowing, like, someone like yourself, if I wanted to do something, if I wanted to be a woodworker or anything like that, or if I wanted to go into IT or whatever, I mean, I would just hit up Julia. That way, she knew where to point me in the right direction. Like, what do you want to do with your life? Like, you know, okay, then I’ll put you in contact with someone that can build a career for you here. And I think that’s something.
And I think, like, younger people, and maybe their communication skills aren’t that great and maybe they’re timid to go out and ask or network or anything like that. I think that there’s way more networking opportunities that, if people just search them out, and found that it’s more of a, this is actually where you want to be, you know? People are great here, they’ll give you the shirt off their back to help you. And that’s one of the main reasons why I stayed here, too, is like, no one’s just going to say, hey, and then just leave you. You know what I’m saying?
I have plenty people’s—if I need to borrow a trailer, like, “Hey, man, can I borrow your trailer?” “Yeah, dude. Like, go ahead, borrow my trailer.” It’s just a great community and there’s not a lot of that out there. You know, everyone’s kind of to themselves in other places, I feel like. And I know that if I hit up someone here, if I hit up one of my parents from a kid that I trained, they’re like, “Yeah, let me help you. Let me help you. Let me help you. Let me help you.”
And honestly, with the culture that we’re building here in No Chance, I mean, a lot of parents come up afterwards and they’re just so thankful that the way we train their kids, how we’re building them into young men, they’re like, “What can we do? How can I help you? What do you guys need? Can I even, like, can I help you clean? Can I help?” And it’s like, it’s a great community here. And once you dive into it and you really want to actually grow a family, and you want to do things here and spread your wings, it’s really, really possible because everyone knows each other.
So, that’d be my answer. I mean, it’s a lot easier, I feel like, to make it here than it would be possibly to go somewhere else just because there’s so many more dots to connect other places. And the way of life is a lot faster, I’d say, in a San Diego or California so, like, you got to keep up with people’s schedules in other places to where, you know if—I mean, it’s—and I think something like that goes back to traffic and there’s just so many people in other places, that you come here, your phone call away, and they’ll actually call you back or they’ll actually meet you because it’s close in proximity and it’s not too far to drive as well.
Julia: And that’s a really good point. Our traffic has gotten a little worse over the last couple of years, but still nowhere near as bad as anywhere else we go. So, I used to be able to make it to Knoxville in about 15 minutes. Now, it takes me 30. If I were in Atlanta, I would not even make it out of the airport in 30 minutes. So, putting that into perspective, Knoxville is a pretty fantastic place to be, honestly, at the end of the day. All right. Tell us about the UK flag hanging in the back up there I just now noticed. Is this all the colleges that you’ve sent kids to or is this just—what is this?
Zane: This is where—yeah, I’ve trained some of the guys here that have gone on to go there and then Kole Cottam right there, he is with the Red Sox; I had to represent him. And I did not put it all up in any specific order. Tennessee happened to go on top though of Kentucky, so sorry about that, but—
Julia: You’re like, “I’m not saying that I helped you win. But—” [laugh].
Zane: And then over here we have some of the countries that I’ve played in over there. So, we’re going to add a few more.
Julia: That’s awesome.
Zane: Just represent the culture. And at least in baseball, there’s not a lot of other countries here in Knoxville, so that’s what’s cool about this facility is we actually have some culture from outside the states training here. We got the Aussie flag back there because we had an Australian guy come in a few months ago. So yeah, just creating a culture.
Julia: That’s awesome. That’s awesome. All right, tell us a little bit about—so if the kids and the parents in Knoxville—or anywhere they are really because they can bring their kids, you travel—tell us about the, like, the types of training that you do, what you offer, how people can find that about you.
Zane: So, we have travel teams, baseball travel teams, that we only specifically focus on high school age, possibly 14, but we want to focus on the older guys right there. We offer strengthing, conditioning here. We do one-on-one training, we do group training, and then we’re getting into—we’re building a little field out back so that we can actually provide baseball development and not so much half an hour lessons—excuse me—half an hour lessons to where we actually teach the game of baseball. They can find me on @nochancehq on Instagram, and then nochanceHQ on Facebook. And then our website is nochancehq.com.
And for that, I mean, we live in a town that we have to play against the elements and against the weather, so growing up in San Diego, it was beautiful all year round, so we could actually get on the field all the time. So, some of the best, at least, per capita baseball players come from warmer regions because they can get on the field more, so their baseball IQs are higher. So, that’s what we’re trying to do is change the culture here that, you know, we can provide a service that we not only do the training, the hitting inside, but we also teach the game of baseball outside. And that’s the best way to learn is on the field. So, that’s something that I’ve been trying to do for the past three to four years here is to be able to get that field.
And it’s an infield, so I mean, that’s all we really need right now for development with bunt coverages and first-and-thirds and ground balls and showcasing and stuff like that. So yeah, we’re just trying to teach the game more because the IQs, at least in this town, are down. And I honestly correlate that to not being on the field as much, you know? And I mean, that’s how you get better at baseball. It’s the most difficult game to get better at in the world. So… such a mental game that, you know, we need to be on the field, that way they can fail on the field in those elements, as opposed to failing all the time inside.
Julia: That’s a really good way to look at it, pretty much for every sport that you can think of. And people from up north just so happen to be better at hockey because they’re indoors all the time because it’s freezing outside, so the only sport that they really get to play all the time is hockey. So, if anybody in the South wants to compete in hockey, which Nashville has done well, but just recently here with the Preds, your kids grow up playing the sport that their outdoors create for them. So, that actually makes a lot of sense. How’s that going? How’s the field coming along?
Zane: Good. We’re looking at, we’re actually going to start a little model or marketing plan to raise some money to actually donate into the field. We’re looking at just getting used turf on the field, that way the rain doesn’t slow us down at all. I know once now it’s going to start raining a little bit more, so that’s always an issue. There’s not enough baseball fields in Knoxville to actually host and handle all the practices and games and tournaments because there’s not enough turf fields.
And we don’t have a complex that has multiple baseball fields on it made of turf. So, a lot of fields that you have to rent here play on the dirt and that always is an issue in the fall and early spring because I mean, you get washes or wash-outs, rain, and it cancels tournaments, it cancels middle school games and that’s a big issue. So, we’re trying to put some used turf out there, that way we can at least, you know, get on the field as much as possible.
Julia: Sure. So, anybody watching this that has used turf, any of the college campuses that take theirs up, anybody just got it, baseball teams, whatever it is out there if you need to contact them or they need to contact you, go to @nochancehq. So, I think that that is an absolutely fantastic idea. I know Farragut is probably one of the biggest baseball high schools that we have in the area. Very big baseball-oriented high school, so I think that that would be something that maybe some of the parents watching can assist with.
And once you put that campaign together, come back and let us know. We’ll add that website and donation link. You know, as I always do, I’ll share anything that you share with me. I always want to support your growth. I think you’re fantastic. So, I really appreciate all of that. We’ve got five minutes left and I want to do a fire around of random questions about Knoxville. So, I always start off: favorite restaurant?
Zane: Chivo.
Julia: [laugh]. It’s so good. It’s so good.
Zane: Lakeside Tavern.
Julia: Oh, Lakeside Tavern’s made it three times so far. What’s your favorite thing on that menu?
Zane: The strawberry chicken salad. Yeah, Katie brought it home one night [unintelligible 00:25:43] school. So, I get that all the time.
Julia: It’s very good.
Zane: Yeah, the Buffalo [unintelligible 00:25:49].
Julia: Oh, that’s delicious. I just finally learned how to make that myself on a TikTok video. I had to figure it out. It’s so good. It’s still not as good as theirs but it’s still pretty gosh darn good. Favorite bar, pub, or brewery? Or all three.
Zane: Phew. Not that I can’t choose; I just haven’t been to the bar brewery in a while. I like—well, when I was living in South Knox, Alliance down there, Alliance Brewery down there on Sevier Avenue, I liked that little strip right there. They got a good thing going down there with the breweries down there.
Julia: They really do. South Knoxville is growing quite a bit. It’s very impressive. So, where are you at now? West Knoxville. So, what’s your favorite thing to do in West Knoxville?
Zane: West Knoxville? Well, we have Carl Cowan Park right across the street, so Katie and I like to bring our two golden retrievers over there and run around and the dogs both jump off the dock now, so we just like bringing the dogs over there to the park. When my buddies come out or when my buddy comes out from East Knox, he always goes and fishes over there for catfish. So, down there at Concord is a great fishing spot that he goes out there and sometimes I’ll tag along because he’s on the hunt for the biggest catfish in Tennessee. So.
Julia: You should probably just take him to a Calhoun’s, during, like, game—right after game day where everybody throws their bread off of the thing. There’s catfish everywhere.
Zane: Oh, I’ll let him know that, actually.
Julia: Yeah that’s a huge one. Calhoun’s has all the catfish that come around there. They [unintelligible 00:27:24] have those little catfish feeders. It’s a very interesting dynamic that Calhoun’s has there. Yeah, it’s very interesting. All right. What is, in your opinion, the best-kept secret that you’ve discovered about Knoxville that every time you tell your friends about it, that’s, like, the thing?
Zane: I mean, one of the very first thing that I heard was the tailgating for Vols football game. So, I don’t know if it’s a kept secret, but these people here go nuts for Vols football or baseball. Any sport here with the Vols. So, I mean, I don’t think it’s a secret, but I mean… and I have not yet thrown on the checkered suspenders and stuff like that, but these people get crazy. I mean, you saw the game the other day against Alabama and everything like that.
So, it’s a… people have to experience a football game here and the vibe and the energy and stuff like that. I mean, I believe it’s one of the biggest stadiums in the world. So, you just got to come out and experience that. And they have great concerts there, too. So, they get some good names in there.
Julia: So, in the history of you playing baseball, have you ever seen people tailgate for a baseball game?
Zane: Yeah.
Julia: So, that’s normal? Because when we started that last year at UT it was the first time we had ever done tailgates for baseball.
Zane: Yeah. Any professional game, everyone’s tailgating in the parking lots and stuff like that. That’s why you see probably fights go on inside stadiums at games because everyone comes in a little bit hammered. So.
Julia: See at UT, we just throw mustard bottles, just [laugh]. All right, anything extra that I haven’t talked about that you want people to know about Knoxville?
Zane: If you play baseball or softball, definitely come check us out. This is the place to be honestly. I mean, I’ve traveled all around the world, all around the states. You don’t have to—you get all the seasons here of weather. I think that’s really neat. It’s not just hot all the time or 70% a year. Although this past summer was pretty hot, but—
Julia: It was warm.
Zane: We’re rolling into fall. You know you’ll get your snow a little bit here. The leaves change colors here, so it’s really a very beautiful year of weather. And yeah, like I said, play baseball, softball make sure you come here. No Chance HQ and we’ll take care of you whatever you need defense, hitting, speed, agilities, and yeah we’re—this is where to be.
Julia: It is. Zane, thank you so much for spending time with us today. We appreciate everything that you do for Knoxville and all the talent and time and energy and positivity that you bring our way. Joe and I are so excited for you and Katie to bring your very first child into the world. We are super excited for your growth and your future. Knoxville, if you need Baseball and Softball Training, this is the only person that I can refer you to. And if that’s something you need, we’re here to Connect the Knox. Bye, everybody.
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