Daniel Molinari

Biography

Daniel Molinari joined the Gaels coaching staff in 2024 after spending two years as the catching coach at Cañada College under head coach Tony Lucca. In those two seasons, each year’s starting catcher transferred on to NCAA programs on a scholarship after their time at Cañada College, including a backstop that led the North Coast Conference in runners thrown out. Last season, Molinari led another stellar catching group for the Gaels including true freshman Ian Armstrong. Armstrong won over the starting job after the first two weeks of the season with both his offensive and defensive ability. The El Granada native finished the season with .364 batting average, 55 hits, five home runs and 40 RBI helping anchor the bottom of the batting order for Saint Mary's. Defensivley, Armstrong also threw out eleven runners and finished the 2025 season with a .992 fielding percentage. Armstrong went on to be named to the All-WCC Second Team and WCCAll-Freshman team, the second consecutive season the Gaels have had a freshman catches named to the team. In his first season as a Gael, Molinari worked with true freshman catcher, Connor "Bear" Harrison, and helped him earn a spot on the WCC All-Freshman Team with a .322 batting average and a .990 fielding percentage. Harrison led the team and threw out nine runners during the 2024 season to rank inside the top-10 in the conference. Senior Nathan Chong also saw time behind the dish and belted a career high 13 home runs with a .270 average. The Pa