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04/19/2018 12:00 AMDan Milardo’s passion for baseball helped him have quite a successful career when he played at Haddam-Killingworth. Now, Dan is using his desire on the diamond to help the Cougars’ current athletes become better ballplayers.
Dan, a Higganum resident, played football and baseball for H-K, earning All-State honors and the Shoreline Conference Player of the Year Award as a captain in the latter sport. After graduating from in 2011, he went to Central Connecticut State University.
Dan had been approached about joining the H-K baseball program as a coach a few times during the past couple of years. This year, the pieces fell into place as Dan is the new assistant coach for the Cougars’ JV team.
“I had never coached before this season, but I love the game so much,” says Dan, who plays in the Greater Hartford Twilight League. “[JV coach] Alex Pollack reached out to me the last two years about coaching here, but I couldn’t make it work. I reached out to him this year, and he said they still needed a coach. It’s really cool to be on the coaching side now and to work with [Head Coach Mark Brookes].”
While still a rookie to the world of coaching, Dan is a veteran in terms of what it takes to build a high-caliber team of first-class athletes. Dan knows that it takes more than just timely hitting and effective pitching for a team to win a title.
“Teamwork is one thing I am big on. It’s also about having the right attitude towards the game, such as not arguing with umpires and running out each hit,” Dan says. “Things like that make a big difference in games. I also want them to enjoy what they are doing, because it goes by fast.”
Unfortunately for the Cougars, the cold winter weather dragged on into April, forcing Dan and company to postpone some of their games. However, Dan is making sure that the H-K dugout offers a warm atmosphere that’s conducive to its athletes faring well on the field.
“So far, we haven’t been able to play many JV games yet, because of the snow and rain. But for me, it’s about making sure they are having a good time and learning,” says Dan. “We have a great team and freshman group, so it will be great to see what they can do.”
Coach Brookes saw Dan reach tremendous heights when Dan competed for Cougars. Now that Dan is a part of his coaching staff, Brookes feels confident that his former athlete has the right mix of skills to get the best out of H-K’s up-and-comers.
“Dan has a low-key approach to coaching that fits the H-K style,” Brookes says. “Having been a Shoreline Conference Player of the Year for H-K, he is confident in giving constructive criticism to our young players. He also has an organized approach to teaching kids the game. Dan is a very welcomed addition to our coaching staff.”
Of course, Dan wants the Cougars’ JV team to have an excellent showing in the win-loss column this spring. However, Dan also knows that the JV team’s main objective is to prepare its players for their call-ups to the big leagues, while providing them with a foundation that will help them come up clutch in big moments.
“At the JV level, we teach a lot of the small stuff like bunting and base running. It’s all very important for that next level, because we play small ball at the varsity level. When I moved up to varsity as a sophomore, those were things I struggled with at first,” says Dan. “We want to go out and try to win every game, but in the long term, it’s about getting guys ready for varsity when the call happens. Our job as coaches is to prepare them for the next level.”