CHESTNUT HILL, Mass. – Boston College baseball alum Blake Butera ’15 was named the manager of the Washington Nationals on Friday morning.
Butera, 33, becomes the youngest first-year manager in Major League Baseball since Frank Quilici managed the Minnesota Twins at age 33 in 1972. Butera has spent the previous eleven seasons with the Tampa Bay Rays organization in a variety of roles:
- 2015-16: Infielder in the Rays’ minor league system.
- 2017: Named Rays’ Low-A affiliate Hudson Valley Renegades first base coach.
- 2018: Became the youngest manager in Minor League Baseball serving as manager of the Hudson Valley Renegades at the age of 25.
- 2021-22: Managed the Rays’ High-A affiliate Charleston RiverDogs to back-to-back Carolina League championships. Was named Carolina League Manager of the Year in both seasons.
- December 2022: Promoted to Minor League Field Coordinator.
- March 2023: Bench Coach for Team Italy in the 2023 World Baseball Classic.
- October 2023: Promoted to Senior Player Development Director.
During his time at BC, he was named to the All-New England third team as a senior and was also named a captain in 2015. Butera ranks second all-time in career at-bats with 774, as well as third all-time in career games played 207 and games started 205. Following graduation, Tampa Bay drafted Butera in the 35th round of the 2015 MLB Draft, where he spent two seasons as an infielder in the Rays’ minor league system.
