Coach D’Amato’s Next Chapter
The Evanston baseball season will be starting without a familiar face this year. Assistant Varsity Coach Christopher D’Amato is leaving the program after 10 years to become the Head Baseball Coach at Stevenson High School.
While he may be crossing over to the opposing dugout, the connection between him and the young men who played for him will last forever.
“I’ve been with these guys since 6th, 7th, 8th grade, watching these guys play and develop. It’ll be a little different seeing them in the opposing dugout. The relationships change when you stop seeing them on the field, and it’ll just be a little different,” said D’Amato.
“While I’m sad to leave the camaraderie of the Nation, I’m excited to build my own high school program and give it a twist and make it my own.”
D’Amato was one of those guys growing up and playing baseball at Notre Dame College Prep. He then continued with his baseball career at North Central College in Naperville as a pitcher.
He continued on his journey to ETHS by starting to do volunteer work at Naperville North and Naperville Central.
“It was through interacting with student athletes that I really knew that I wanted to coach, because I wanted to make an impact on those kids’ lives.”
He returned to college to get a teaching degree and ended up arriving at ETHS as a substitute teacher.
“Being a sub allowed me to build relationships with the students and community of Evanston, and I was lucky enough to be hired as a PE teacher down the road here.”
Eventually, he was hired, and as he puts it, “the rest was history.”
D’Amato started off as a sophomore assistant baseball coach and continued to climb up the coaching ladder by becoming the J.V. head coach. By 2021, he became the Varsity Assistant and Pitching Coach. He also worked with the outfielders and tried to help out as much as he could.
“I couldn’t limit myself to one position, and my goal was to help everyone and try to help every player get better.”
Tate Schroeder played for Coach D’Amato and enjoyed playing for him every time he stepped on the field.
“I’ll miss his spirits. Every time he was around the team and me, he was always willing to talk about anything going on. He always made sure that we were physically and mentally well,” commented Schroeder. “He’s such a great guy that’s going to be missed a lot.”
D’Amato will coach his first game for the Patriots on March 22nd.
“While I’m sad to leave the camaraderie of the Nation, I’m excited to build my own high school program and give it a twist and make it my own,” reflected D’Amato.
