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Steve Johnson begins his sixth season at the helm of the Grizzly baseball program.

After five seasons of leading the Butler program, the improvement is obvious.  During Johnson’s first season the Grizzlies struggled to a 22-30 record.  The second season, however, tells a different story.  The 2005 Grizzly squad showed a significant improvement registering a 34-24 record.  Their conference mark of 21-11, made the Grizzlies, Jayhawk West Conference Co-Champions.  This season marked the first winning record  in five seasons for Butler, the most total wins & conference wins in five seasons, and the first conference championship since 1997.  This success earned Johnson the Jayhawk West Coach of the Year honors.

During Johnson’s third campaign the Grizzlies took it to the next level by compiling a 39-19 record, winning the Region VI Championship, and making the schools second appearance of all-time in the NJCAA World Series.  Following the season Johnson was named the NJCAA Central District & ABCA Regional Coach of the Year. 

The 2007 season was yet another successful one for the Grizzlies baseball program. Last year’s squad compiled a 39-15 record and captured the KJCCC West Division Championship.  Along the way Johnson notched his 100th win at Butler on March 2nd with a 14-5 victory over Murray State (OK).  Johnson also was recognized as the Jayhawk West Coach of the Year for the second time in three seasons.

In 2008 the Grizzlies once again reached the 30 win plateau and their top 4 conference finish allowed them to host the first round of the post-season for the fourth consecutive year.

In five seasons at Butler, Johnson has coached 5 All-Region selections, 18 All-Conference selections,  11 Hon. Mention Conference selections, and 4 players have been drafted.  Six former Grizzlies have gone on to play in professional baseball since Johnson’s arrival at Butler.  Johnson has also seen 3 players receive Academic All-American honors.

Prior to arriving at Butler, Johnson was the pitching coach and chief recruiter for two seasons at the Univ. of Louisiana-Monroe.  While at ULM the Indians were the 2002 Southland Conference Champions.  Other stops in Johnson’s coaching career include four years at Barton County CC and two years at Fort Hays State University.  While he was an assistant at Barton County, the Cougars averaged 30 wins per season and made a regional final four appearance in 2001.  During Johnson’s time at FHSU, the Tigers won the RMAC conference tournament and finished 1997 as the NCAA II West Regional Runner-Up, with a final national Top 10 ranking.  In his eight years as an assistant coach Johnson saw 10 of his pitchers go on to play professional baseball, with two making it to the Major League level.  Johnson’s overall record as an assistant was 262-190.

A native of Salisbury, MO, Johnson played at Barton County CC in 1989-90 earning Jayhawk Conference and All-Region honors.  After Barton, Johnson played at the Univ. of Alabama-Birmingham where he pitched one season and was named the MVP of the Sun Belt Conference Tournament.  That season UAB made their only NCAA regional appearance in school history.  In 1992, Johnson signed a contract with the St. Louis Cardinals organization and played five seasons of professional baseball.

In 2000, Johnson was inducted into the El Dorado Baseball Hall of Fame for his performance with the Broncos summer collegiate team during the 1990-91 campaigns.

Johnson completed a bachelor’s degree in Physical Education with an emphasis in Sports Management at Fort Hays State University in 1997.

Johnson’s Career Coaching Record

Assistant Coaching Record
Year     School                                      Record             Notes
1996    Fort Hays State                        39-16               RMAC Runner-Up
1997    Fort Hays State                        48-15               RMAC Champs/West Regional
1998    Barton County                          29-17  
1999    Barton County                          30-27
2000    Barton County                          24-34
2001    Barton County                          34-24               Region VI – Final Four
2002    Louisiana-Monroe                   29-29               Southland Conf. Co-Champs
2003    Louisiana-Monroe                   29-28
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Overall Record as Asst. (8yrs) 262-190

Head Coaching Record
2004    Butler                                       22-30
2005    Butler                                       34-24               Conf. Co-Champs/ Region Final 8
2006    Butler                                       39-19               Region VI Champs/ NJCAA World Series
2007    Butler                                       39-15               Conf. Co-Champs/ Region VI (3rd)
2008    Butler                                       30-24               Conf. Top 4/First Round Host
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Overall Record Head Coach (5yrs.)   164-112

Coach Johnson's Milestone Victories

Email Coach Johnson at sjohns19@butlercc.edu