Burdan becomes Pottsgrove skipper
Former Pottstown, Alvernia standout replaces Ashburn Jr.
LOWER POTTSGROVE » Even back when Steve Burdan was a young baseball player at Pottstown High School, it was always in the back of his mind that coaching would be a natural progression some day.
But he never dreamed his first head coaching post would be just a few miles up the street. And so soon.
Burdan, the former Trojan and Pottstown Steelers American Legion standout outfielder who subsequently shined even more at Alvernia College, has been named the new head baseball coach at Pottsgrove, taking over from Richie Ashburn, Jr., who stepped down for family reasons.
“I’m pretty excited,” said Burdan, who is also a teacher at Pottsgrove High School. “When you’re a player, it’s always kind of in the back of your mind that one day your playing days are going to be over and that coaching is a good way to get back in the game.”
He didn’t waste any time getting started, paying his dues as an assistant baseball coach over the past half dozen years.
After graduating from Alvernia in 2008, Burdan served as an assistant at Pottstown for two years, then at Alvernia for three years, and last season
as an assistant to Ashburn at Pottsgrove.
It did catch him by surprise when he was suddenly told he was the man in charge of the Falcons baseball team, starting now.
“To be honest, initially, it did kind of come out of the blue,” he said. “I’m pretty close with Rich and he let me know he was going to be stepping down. Rich did tell me he recommended me. But it did still come as a surprise to me because we were working together on a game plan for this year and I just didn’t expect it.”
Ashburn’s in-laws, now in their early 90’s and living with Ashburn and his wife, needed him around more. And starting now. And it seems he knew the program would be in good hands.
Ashburn and Burdan do go back to Burdan’s high school days.
“I played for Rich back in Pottstown,” Burdan said. “As a baseball guy, you can’t have a higher recommendation than from a guy like Rich.”
Ashburn was an assistant to then-Trojans’ head baseball coach Bernie Gallagher. He was the head baseball coach at Pottsgrove for the past four years.
Ashburn will still have ties to Pottsgrove, according to Pottsgrove Athletic Director Gary DeRenzo.
“Hewill continue to coach 7th grade football in the fall for us,” DeRenzo said. “He is a true gentleman and will be sorely missed, class individual all the way around. Even more evident as he steps up to help with the care of his wife’s parents.”
And DeRenzo has nothing but high praise for Burdan.
“Steve brings a wealth of experience to our program and we are excited to see our program grow under his direction,” DeRenzo said. “He is a motivated and enthusiastic leader who is studentcentered, yet focuses on the details that make a big difference in the classroom and on the baseball field.
“He has a bit of old school in his approach as well and brings a no-nonsense approach that emphasizes hard work, discipline and effort.”
It might be intimidating to some to take over from a coach whose name is recognized all around here. Richie Ashburn Jr., is, after all, the son of Phillies Hall of Famer and then revered announcer Richie Ashburn, Sr.
”It’s not intimidating following Rich just because he has given so much back not just to Pottsgrove, but Pottstown, Owen J., so many people,” Burdan said.
He wasn’t intimidated by any pitcher or hitter as a player, so why start now?
And he feels he lucked out getting to work with some great coaches over the past six years, Burdan stressed.
“I worked with a lot of good coaches I was able of learn from, observe, take different pieces from each of them to be able to form my own philosophies,” Burdan said. “Now it’s kind of a chance for me to take a lot of what I have learned from all of the coaches I worked under, really form my own philosophy to see if it works.”
And his philosophy is to get back to the fundamentals.
“Coming back to Pottsgrove last year, after coaching at the college level, and having to re-teach a lot of fundamentals was kind of tough,” Burdan said. “At the college level, that kind of stuff has already been taught. And when you come back to the high school level, you take it for granted that the guys know a lot more than what they do. So one of my big things is to focus really on fundamentals, on getting back to the small things that, hopefully, will lead to bigger things.”
The Falcons finished with a 3-16 overall record last season, 2-16 in the PAC10. And Burdan is facing a continuing rebuilding job at Pottsgrove.
“Absolutely, it’s going to be a rebuilding process” he said. “But the kids that have come out have come out very positively. They worked hard this offseason, they’ve bought into working hard, bought into that focusing on their job is going to help them succeed.
“So even though we’re in a rebuilding year, we hope that we’re going to have a little more success with the kids at least gaining confidence in their ability to play with just about any team.”