This is a printer-friendly version of an article from Zip06.com.
06/15/2017 12:00 AMDom Delbasso has always made it a point to put his teams first as a Yellowjackets’ athlete. Whether he was playing baseball or basketball for East Haven, Dom prided himself on being a great teammate. For his team-first attitude on the baseball field, Dom was presented with the No ‘I’ in Team Award from the Southern Connecticut Diamond Club.
“It’s a great honor to me to receive that. I tried my best to keep the team positive through the bad and the good,” says Dom. “Knowing there were other kids on the team that could’ve been recipients and to know coach picked me, I really appreciate that, because I really do try my best to be a team player and the best teammate I can be. It really is an honor to me.”
Even though Dom wasn’t one of the Yellowjackets’ captains, he was still a senior leader and respected by the younger guys, who responded to his positive attitude in the dugout.
“In our first game against North Haven, we were down. I was the one who got everybody up from sitting on the bench, and then we went on a hitting streak. I started to pump them up,” Dom says. “I know being a senior and one of the older kids on the team, the younger guys are looking up to me as a role model, so I tried to be the best role model I could be for them, because I know one day they’re going to be senior leaders.”
Taking into account Dom’s exemplary attitude, Head Coach Butch Johnson knew that he was the right guy on his squad to nominate for the No ‘I’ in Team Award.
“It’s quite an honor for the person who puts everything for the team first,” Coach Johnson says. “He was our utility guy. He didn’t play much, but he had three hits on Senior Night, kept a good attitude, and played hard.”
Half of Dom’s hits this year came on Senior Night, and he finished the season 6-for-15 for an batting average of .400.
“Hitting wise, I had a pretty good season. Coming off the bench, I went up knowing I had to prove myself to the coach and my teammates,” he says. “I approached every at-bat knowing I had to get a hit to prove myself.”
Although he grew up as a second baseman, Dom wound up playing the corner outfield spots more as he got older. That was the case this season as he split time between left field, right field, and the designated hitter position.
“When coach needed someone in the field, he had the confidence to put me in,” says Dom. “In high school, I became more comfortable in the corner outfield.”
As a member of the basketball team, Dom was a shooting guard who made an impact coming off the bench. He constantly did the little things the right way for the betterment of his team.
“Any time they needed someone to get a loose ball or a rebound, I was the guy the coach put in, because I was the guy that hustled and played good defense,” Dom says. “I have a lot of energy, and everyone in the school knows that I like to have fun and give it my all. On the court, I want to be the guy everyone expects to get the tough rebound or dives on the floor to get the loose ball. I want to be that guy, so that’s what drives me to be who I am.”
Dom isn’t sure if he will continue his baseball career in college, but he’s thinking about walking on to University of New Haven baseball team next spring. Either way, Dom knows how special it was being a member of East Haven athletics family throughout the past four years.
“I wanted this year to be special for the rest of the seniors on the team, knowing this would be the last time we’d all be playing together,” says Dom. “I came to love my teammates. Everything I did, I did for them, and it’s what made me want to be a leader for the team.”