Podcast: Cheshire Academy coach Anthony Giano on D1 pipeline

Cheshire Academy coach Anthony Giano has 11 college commits in the Class of '24 on his roster. (Cheshire Athletics)

The latest guest on The Base Path Podcast is a prep school coach who currently has 14 future college baseball players on his roster — Cheshire Academy’s Anthony Giano.

Giano squad includes commits to UConn, Notre Dame, Virginia Tech, UMass Lowell, St. John’s University, Villanova, College of Charleston and Hofstra. Giano’s 2023 squad, which finished 10th in the final NEBJ Prep Coaches Poll, had eight players who will be playing college baseball this spring.

Giano shared with host Dan Guttenplan how he has created a pipeline to college baseball.

“My term for myself is passionately aggressive,” Giano said. “I’m passionate to get these guys into school, and I’m aggressive to get on the phone, make phone calls, and send videos. I also work with a lot of their travel coaches in the summer. So, I make sure they’re at the right tournaments where the right people can see them.

“All summer, I’m on the phone, getting kids in front of the right people and trying to make good decisions for their future. And at our school, we’re fortunate with our college counseling to match schools, not only athletically, but academically.”

Giano is the coach of one of the top New England prep programs – quite possibly the favorite to earn the No. 1 ranking in our Prep Coaches Poll. Cheshire finished 15-2 last season, falling to Salisbury School in the WNEPBL championship game. Giano’s ballclub hit .356, scored 145 runs, stole 59 bases, and compiled a 1.62 ERA.

Giano also stockpiles talent within his program by recruiting potential transfers from public and private schools. This year’s group of incoming transfers includes two commits to UConn (Zach Worzel, Daniel Margolies).

“I get a lot of referrals from travel coaches,” Giano said. “They can be a good fit. I’m also on the phone doing a lot of recruiting. I have three kids that I’ve talked to since they were in sixth grade that are coming in as 2028s. So, I’m actively recruiting. I’m in constant contact with a bunch of travel coaches, not only in Connecticut, but New York, Massachusetts, and the Tri-State area. I’ve talked to some kids from California. I talked to kids from Texas, so I’m actively recruiting and I do have a good group of people that try to send me people as well.”

Listen to the entire podcast with Coach Giano.

The New England Baseball Journal podcast is brought to you by the University of Nebraska High School.

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