Santonocito is one of Western New York’s most prolific instructors, bringing a wealth of knowledge to the community. Santonocito has been involved in the game since he was a student athlete at West Seneca East. Upon graduating, Santonocito attended Monroe Community College where he would be named an NJCAA Division I All-American during his second season in 1997. Following the ’97 season, Santonocito shipped off to Division II Mercyhurst where he would earn the status of All-American, this time under the NCAA umbrella during the 1998 season.
After three years of college baseball, Santonocito was drafted in the 28th Round of the 1998 MLB Draft by the Arizona Diamondbacks, becoming just the seventh member of the Mercyhurst baseball team to be drafted by a big-league club. After the selection, Santonocito spent two years within the minor leagues across two organizations.
Following his playing career, Santonocito got in to the coaching and administrative side of the game, opening the Academy in 2001 while becoming an Associate Scout in 2008 – a position in which he worked for multiple MLB organizations including the Twins and the Phillies.
While leading the Academy Stars, Santonocito has developed over 100 players that have played at the college level along with over 20 that have played professional with the most recent being Matt Minnick (AAA, New York Yankees) and Jonah Heim (MLB, Texas Rangers). Santonocito offers instruction in all facets of the game and can be booked by calling (716) 823-3001.
