By Christopher Ochoa

After an exciting career coaching his passion, baseball, Coach Pete Diaz is retiring. While he stated that he still has a lot of gas in his tank, he feels that he has made his mark on the baseball team and also on the school culture here at PHS.

Coach Diaz attributes his success to his own experience as a student athlete at PHS. Yes he is an Indian at heart, graduating from this school years ago.

Coach Diaz

He has been playing baseball since 1976, and has taken the lessons learned here as a student to create the mission for his own young men, “to make you a better man: mind, body and spirit.”

His explanation for the meaning and significance of this mission is best stated in his own words.

“I’m here to try and make you a better man, that means getting good grades by developing your mind, working hard to be strong by working hard and training, and most importantly, developing your spirit by learning and working towards being a better person,” he said.

Speaking of his own secret to his long success here, he refers to a great quote from Philippians 2:3, “Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourself.”

Joncarlos Severino

He certainly has put the needs of his students and his players above himself, helping them to succeed, as he has.

Coaching baseball at PHS since 1996 and as head coach since 2009, Diaz has had the time needed to make a mark on the program. He has shaped the way students train and learn, and how they develop the skills needed to be better people.

“Coach makes you work for it. Nothing comes easy,” said JanCarlos Severino, one of his graduating players.

Another senior player, Joan Santana said, “I like coach but you got to work. Coach won’t let you slack off.” Other players stated that the coach’s favorite quote is from Roberto Clemente “Anytime you have an opportunity to make a difference in this world and you don’t, then you are wasting your time on Earth.”

This quote definitely speaks to the idea that the team is here to build better players.

Joan Santana

Coach Diaz is proud of all his players, but he points to former players, who continue to play, after they graduate from PHS. For example Nilo Rijo, class of 2015, signed with the Boston Red Sox. Class of 2017, Jose Ledesma is playing for Rowan College at Gloucester and 2018 graduate, Angel Cespedes is playing for Howard College in Texas.

Working hard, training hard, and playing hard at PHS can certainly open doors for students to succeed out in the world.

Thank you, Coach Diaz, and farewell!