Brett Butler (baseball)
| Brett Butler | |||
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Butler with the Dodgers on April 14, 1993
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| Center fielder | |||
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Born: June 15, 1957 Los Angeles, California |
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| MLB debut | |||
| August 20, 1981, for the Atlanta Braves | |||
| Last MLB appearance | |||
| September 28, 1997, for the Los Angeles Dodgers | |||
| MLB statistics | |||
| Batting average | .290 | ||
| Hits | 2,375 | ||
| Runs batted in | 578 | ||
| Stolen bases | 558 | ||
| Teams | |||
| Career highlights and awards | |||
Brett Morgan Butler (born June 15, 1957) is a former center fielder in Major League Baseball and current base running/outfield coach for the Miami Marlins. He played for five different teams from 1981 through 1997. Butler's best season came in 1991, when he made the National League All-Star team. He was diagnosed with cancer in May 1996, received treatment and returned to the playing field four months later. He retired in 1997 and began a baseball coaching career. He has coached or managed numerous professional teams. He was the manager of the Reno Aces minor league team from late 2008 through 2013.
Butler spent his teenaged years in Libertyville, Illinois, where he was a starting outfielder on the Libertyville High School baseball team that finished in the top 16 teams in the State his senior year. Upon graduating, he announced plans to play baseball in college, and his high school coach, Ernie Ritta, scoffed. Butler, who had explored walking on at baseball powerhouse Arizona State, made the team at Southeastern Oklahoma State University. The outfielder led the Savages to championships during all three years at Southeastern including an NAIA national runner-up finish in 1977. He was twice named to the NAIA All-America Baseball Team. Butler rewrote the record book at Southeastern. He was the Savage's first .400 hitter with a .439 average in 1977. He set career records in home runs (31), runs (209), triples (15), hits (220), walks (162), and career batting average (.394).
After attending Southeastern Oklahoma, Butler was drafted in the 23rd round of the 1979 amateur draft by the Atlanta Braves. The Braves were building a contender with players like Dale Murphy, Bob Horner, and Glenn Hubbard after years of losing, but they lacked a leadoff hitter with speed. After playing in the minor leagues, he made his major league debut with the Braves on August 20, 1981. Butler helped lead the Braves to a 13–0 start and the National League West Division title in 1982, their first division title since 1969. He had another fine year with the Braves in 1983, but they finished second in the West to the Los Angeles Dodgers.
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