About Butia Baseball
Youth Baseball Training and Hitting Coach
You are never too old or young to fulfill your dreams.
As a young child I became passionate about baseball. It began by hitting wiffle balls in the driveway with my dad, and that evolved into tournament teams with all of my friends. I was having the time of my life while my parents were spending every weekend in a different part of Western PA so I could pursue my passion. As a parent now, I am so thankful that my parents gave me the opportunity to succeed. They sacrificed many summers for me. Anyone else in this boat right now? Doing everything you can for your kids so they can do what they love?… I’m here to tell you it’s worth it!
My love for baseball did not stop. I played in high school at North Allegheny where we won the PIAA State Championship, and I was inducted into the North Allegheny Hall of Fame in 2016. It was during my junior year that Division 1 programs were beginning to show interest.
Interestingly enough, I wasn’t always the strongest, fastest or best player growing up but continued to put in the work day after day to refine and develop my skills.
I earned a scholarship to play Division 1 baseball at James Madison University where I was a 3-year starter and team captain. JMU was the first school to recruit me and offer me a scholarship – I quickly knew JMU was a perfect fit and committed before the end of my junior year.
As I continued to improve and develop, a number of perennial powerhouse D1 schools came knocking my senior year including: Clemson, Florida and Florida State. After many conversations with my family and friends I decided to honor my commitment to JMU. Looking back, if I would have gone to a bigger school I probably wouldn’t have played as a freshman.
The perks of going to a smaller school were I got the opportunity to play immediately which allowed me to continue to develop and improve both fundamentally and mentally.
Fast forward to my Junior year, I was a top MLB prospect and was selected by the Cleveland Indians in the 5th round of the 2004 Major League Baseball draft. I decided to leave school early to pursue my life long dream of being a professional baseball player.
I played 5 years in the Indians organization where in 2004 I finished 3rd in the New York Penn League in batting behind Ben Zobrist and Hunter Pence – both perennial MLB All-Stars. I was also named to the New York Penn League All-Star team.
I reached my dream of playing professionally, but after 5 years in the minors I was released without achieving my ultimate goal of playing in the big leagues. It was time to pivot and reinvent myself. I had valuable skills that I had learned all of these years in baseball: discipline, grit and determination to start the next chapter of my life.
It’s these life skills that have served me over time in my career and relationships. It’s these skills that I want to instill and mold into the kids that come to my baseball school.
I want them to not only have a passion for baseball but to also have life skills for someday when they leave the diamond.
After being released by the Indians I went back to James Madison University to finish my bachelors degree in Sport Management and Business. I moved to Chicago to start my career with IBM. I’ve continued to succeed in roles at IBM, SAP, Ansys and Silicon Valley start-ups.
It’s now time to return to my true passion and open a school where I can teach kids and teens the best part of baseball – for some it’s the dream of the big leagues, and for others, it’s simply making the team and building those bonds that last a lifetime.
