Baseball
- Title:
- Assistant Coach / Recruiting Coordinator
- Hometown:
- Sulphur, La.
- Year at Mizzou:
- 2020 (1st Season)
- Alma Mater:
- Oklahoma, '88
Mizzou Baseball added Todd Butler to its coaching staff on Aug. 5, 2019, by head coach Steve Bieser. Butler becomes the Tigers’ newest assistant coach and will also serve as the program’s recruiting coordinator.
“We’re excited to have Coach Butler join our staff,” Bieser said. “He brings a wealth of experience to our program and has demonstrated success at every stop he has made throughout his 27-years as a college coach. His number one responsibility will be to bring excellent recruiting classes to Mizzou. When you look at his track record, there is no doubt he will be successful in that role. Not only can he recruit, but he’s an excellent teacher of the game and does a great job of developing young men.”
“I’m very excited about this opportunity to join Coach Bieser and his staff at Mizzou,” Butler said. “I want to thank Steve and Athletic Director Jim Sterk for giving me the chance to re-join the great Southeastern Conference. This will be my 17th year in the league and it’s truly the greatest conference in the nation. Coach Bieser, Coach Corral and the rest of the staff are doing outstanding things in Columbia and I want to help take this program to the next level. My family and I are very thankful for this opportunity and we can’t wait to get started!”
Butler joins the Mizzou staff after a six-year (2013-19) run as the head coach at Wichita State. He has spent the past 27 years as either an assistant or head coach at the Division I level. Along with the Shockers, Butler has served on the staffs at McNeese State (1992-94, 2000-03), Alabama (1994-2000, ’03-05) and Arkansas (2005-13).
Across his long-tenured Division I coaching career, Butler’s squads have produced five College World Series appearances, six NCAA Super Regional bids and 17 trips to an NCAA Regional. He has also coached 36 combined All-Americans and Freshman All-Americans, 171 players selected in the MLB Draft and 45 individuals who ultimately reached the Major Leagues.
In his recent six-year tenure in Wichita, Kan., Butler oversaw 28 MLB draftees and 11 combined All-American and Freshman All-American honorees. In 2018, Wichita State produced 11 MLB Draft picks, ranking as the second-highest total in the country. Five of those 11 draftees were chosen in the top 10 rounds, highlighted by No. 3 overall selection Alec Bohm. Additionally, Butler oversaw 2014 consensus first team All-American Casey Gillaspie, who was later selected No. 20 overall that year by the Tampa Bay Rays.
Butler routinely brought in some of the nation’s top talent to Wichita State, highlighted by the nation’s No. 2 recruiting class in 2014 and No. 25 recruiting class in 2015.
Spanning across eight years as an associate head coach and recruiting coordinator with Arkansas, Butler and the Razorbacks reached the NCAA Tournament each season with three NCAA Super Regional bids (2009, ’10, ’12) and two trips to the College World Series (2009, ’12). As the lead recruiting coordinator, Butler helped haul-in five, top 10 national recruiting classes, including the nation's No. 1 class in 1996, '97, '09 and '13.
In Fayetteville, Ark., Butler oversaw seven All-Americans, eight freshmen All-Americans, 18 All-SEC honorees and 12 SEC All-Tournament team members. Countless Razorbacks excelled after their collegiate careers as well, highlighted by 67 MLB Draft picks, 18 MLB alums and eight Team USA selections.
Butler was the lead recruiter of 2013 ABCA / Rawlings National High School Player of the Year, Andrew Benintendi. In his 2015 sophomore campaign at Arkansas, Benintendi was named the Golden Spikes Award Winner, Baseball America College Player of the Year and SEC Player of the Year. He was later selected No. 7 overall in that year’s MLB Draft by the Boston Red Sox.
Butler has spent a total of 17 seasons as an assistant and associate head coach in the Southeastern Conference. He had two stints over a combined eight years on the Alabama staff, aiding the Crimson Tide to four SEC Tournament Championships, seven NCAA Regional appearances and three trips to the College World Series (1996, ’97, ’99). The 1997 Crimson Tide finished runner-up at that season’s CWS.
Across his two stints in Tuscaloosa, Ala., Butler oversaw 22 All-Americans, nine Freshmen All-Americans and 17 All-SEC honorees. Butler hauled in five, top 10 recruiting classes, aiding Alabama to one of its top stretches on the field in program history.
Historically as a lead recruiter on his respective coaching staffs, Butler has brought in 11 freshmen classes ranked among the nation’s top 11. In 1999, Alabama’s incoming freshmen class was ranked fourth-best in the country and still stands as the program’s all-time highest ranked class.
Butler began his long-tenured Division I coaching background at McNeese State as the head coach from 2000-03 and as an assistant coach from 1992-94. As the leader of the program in the early 2000’s, he improved the Cowboys’ win total each year, capped by a 2003 Southland Conference Tournament championship. The automatic bid to the 2003 NCAA Tournament marked only McNeese State’s fourth all-time NCAA Regional appearance.
On the field, Butler oversaw 18 MLB Draft picks with four of those players ultimately reaching the big leagues.
Prior to beginning his coaching career, Butler played collegiately for McNeese State (1985-86) and Oklahoma (1987-88). In his senior campaign with the Sooners, Butler earned Third Team All-America honors while also being named to the All-Region and All-Big Eight Conference teams. He later signed a professional deal with the Cleveland Indians and played for one season.
Butler received his Bachelor of Arts in Liberal Studies from McNeese State. He is originally a native of Sulphur, La., and is married to his wife, Melissa. They have two daughters, Caitlyn and Kendyll.
