Wisconsin-Whitewater honored longtime baseball coach James B. Miller this month by renaming its ballpark in his honor.

Miller, who retired from coaching in 2003 after 17 years at the helm of the Warhawks, continues to serve on the school’s athletics staff.

“When you start out as a coach, you’re not looking for these honors…you just want to win the next game,” said Miller, who won a school-record 416 games and led teams to seven Division III Baseball Championship appearances.

“I’ve been very fortunate to be able to stay at UW-Whitewater and build up a strong resume,” he said. “It’s very flattering to think that in 50 years from now my name will be on something. It’s just unbelievable.”

Miller, who played at the school during the early 1960s, is in his 41st year in the athletics department.

“ ‘Mills’ has invested a lot of blood, sweat and tears into Warhawk baseball and personally I couldn’t think of anyone more deserving of this naming opportunity than he,” said Athletics Director Paul Plinske. “He and his wife Carol (the university’s director of financial aid) have given of their personal resources in ways that have significantly enhanced the student-athlete experience.”

The baseball stadium’s Prucha Field currently is undergoing facility upgrades worth $900,000, including an improved sound system, a new masonry backstop with suspended netting, new bullpens and a synthetic-turf infield, among other improvements.

The Warhawks have enjoyed continuing success since Miller stepped away from coaching, claiming the Division III championship in 2005 and finishing third in 2004 and 2008.

A formal dedication of Miller Stadium is planned for spring 2010.