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OUR Staff
Founded by New York Mets Hall of Famer and World Series Champ, Howard "HoJo" Johnson, and his son, Glen
With coaching experience from high school to Major League, our program is designed to help young athletes reach their full potential.

Co-Founder
Howard "HoJo" Johnson
Known to everyone as "HoJo". With a 14-year MLB career from 1982 to 1995, he played for the Detroit Tigers, NY Mets, Colorado Rockies, and Chicago Cubs, winning World Series titles with the Tigers in 1984 and the Mets in 1986. From 1992 to 1997, he held the National League career record for home runs by a switch hitter, and from 1987 to 1996, he held the single-season record for the same category. He was a three-time member of the 30–30 club, had the second-highest home run total in the NL from 1987 to 1991, and was an All-Star and Silver Slugger award winner in 1989 and 1991. In 1991, he became the only switch-hitter to lead the NL in both home runs and RBIs in the same season and was the only Met to lead the league in RBIs. Since 2001, he has worked as a hitting coach in both Major and Minor Leagues with the NY Mets, Seattle Mariners, and Texas Rangers.

Director of HoJo Baseball, 11U & 14U Tucci Coach
Matt Whisenant
With over 12 years as a professional pitcher, he played at the Major League level for the Kansas City Royals, San Diego Padres, and the 1997 World Champion Florida Marlins. He signed his first professional contract in 1989 after being selected by the Philadelphia Phillies, was traded to the Marlins in 1993, then to the Royals in 1997, and later signed with the Padres. He also played in the Arizona Fall League in 1995 and 1997 and the Puerto Rican Winter League in 1996. Currently, he serves as the Head Pitching Coach at Franklin Road Academy and has led three Southern California high school baseball programs over 20 years, including Montclair Prep, Village Christian Schools, and his alma mater, La Canada High School. He has been a private instructor for over 25 years, coached the Southern California Chicago Cubs Scout Team for over a decade, and has helped over 300 student-athletes advance to collegiate and professional levels.

10U & 13U Tucci Coach
Elijah Tolsma
As a 4-year Varsity starter at Bishop Montgomery High School in Torrance, California with experience as a pitcher, outfielder, and infielder, he earned All-League honors all four years and All-State honors once. In addition, he holds the single season ERA record at his high school with a 0.22 in his junior year in 2019. After a COVID shortened senior year, he went on to continue his playing career with five years of college baseball experience. He played for the University of San Francisco in 2021, where he would pitch against Stanford before an injury shortened season. He then went to El Camino College in Los Angeles for the 2022 and 2023 season where he would earn All Conference awards in both seasons as a pitcher and an outfielder. He concluded his career at Cameron University in Lawton, Oklahoma for the 2024 and 2025 season as a true two-way player.

12U & 15U Coach
Stephen Smith
He is a hitting and catching instructor at Showtime. From 2015 to 2019, he played as a catcher and corner infielder at Helena High School in Alabama and Summit High School in Spring Hill during his senior year, reaching the state championship with both schools. He continued his baseball career at Bethel University, where he played as a catcher from 2019 to 2022. Additionally, he umpired USSSA games for two years.

11U & 13U Coach
Michael Edlund
Three year Varsity starter at Caruthers High School where he was a 2nd team All conference player as a sophomore and 1st team all conference as a junior and senior and selected to play in the Fresno County all-star game. Primarily an infielder but was a strong defender at every position. As a senior, he assumed the closer role and appeared in a dozen games. Hit well over .400 in his three years as a Varsity starter and an effective base stealer but was most well known for driving in runs especially late in games. He took a scholarship offer from Simpson University and spent his freshman year there as a two-way player getting most of his innings as a shortstop and relief pitcher. The following year he transferred to West Hills College where he redshirt and spent the following year as a firstbaseman. He then stepped away from his playing career due to injuries and spent the next nine years coaching at his alma mater Caruthers. He has also spent three summers coaching a collegiate summer ball team in Fresno, first two acting as the pitching coach and this past summer as the head of analytics and bench coach.

13U Coach
Kyle Muhlsteff
Kyle is a 2005 graduate of Esperanza HS in Anaheim, CA where he was an All-Sunset League selection as well as the 2005 National Classic Tournament MVP. After playing junior college baseball, he earned a scholarship to play at Valparaiso University in 2008. During his 2 years at Valparaiso, he started 105 games at shortstop, second base, and third base. He was voted a team captain as a senior where he broke the university's single season doubles record with 23. In other single season categories, Kyle sits 2nd in at-bats (245), 2nd in runs (59), and 3rd in hits (83). In 2011, Kyle signed a professional contract and played for Na Koa Ikaika Maui in the Northern American League. Muhlstaff coached travel baseball in Southern California from 2014-2017 and was named the 2016 SO Cal FCA Baseball Coach of the Year. In addition, he was a high school varsity baseball coach from 2017-2022 where he earned Coach of the Year honors in 2018 for his alma mater Esperanza HS in Anaheim, CA, and in 2022 for Green Hill HS in Mt. Juliet.

Co-Founder
Glen Johnson
As a four-year varsity shortstop and switch hitter at South Fork High School in Stuart, FL, he earned All-American honors in 2007 and was featured in the All-American game presented by PlayStation. That year, he was also listed among Baseball America’s Top-300 Prospects and drafted in the 36th round by the New York Mets. He went on to play college baseball at Jacksonville University and Pace University from 2008 to 2012. After signing with the Rockland Boulders in 2011, he played two additional years of Independent Ball with the Newark Bears and Edinburgh Roadrunners. Following in the footsteps of his father, MLB veteran Howard “HoJo” Johnson, he has been a hitting/fielding instructor at Showtime Sports Academy since 2013 and serves as the head baseball coach at Franklin Road Academy.

Director of HoJo Baseball, 8U & 15U Tucci Coach
Dalton Ney
A right-handed hitter capable of playing both infield and outfield, he played at Franklin Road Academy from 2012 to 2016, earning 4 All-District and 2 All-Region honors with a career .395 batting average and 11 home runs. He played a key role in leading FRA to a state championship in 2016. From 2017 to 2019, he spent three years at Lee University, where he competed in the Gulf South Conference Tournament Championship and led his sophomore year with a .290 batting average. He concluded his collegiate career with two years at Kentucky Wesleyan College from 2020 to 2021.

8U & 15U Tucci Coach
Brooks Price
A right-handed hitting shortstop and second baseman, he is currently the Head Coach for HoJo 15U. From 2015 to 2017, he was a starting middle infielder at Fredericksburg High School near Austin, TX, and continued as a starting middle infielder and leadoff hitter at Franklin Road Academy from 2017 to 2019, earning two All-District and three All-Tournament team honors, making the All-Region Tournament Team, and finishing with a career .320 batting average and .988 fielding percentage. He played at Cairn University from 2019 to 2023, where he achieved a .985 fielding percentage and was the team’s leading infielder at shortstop.

17U Coach
Zac Benedetti
A pitcher and current coach for HoJo 17U, he has coached at Fury Baseball Academy, Nashville Baseball Academy, and was a key player at Chattanooga University, contributing to multiple championships and leading in saves.

9U & 13U Coach
Bryan Noonan
A right-handed pitcher and four-year letter winner at Hunterdon Central Regional High School, he was an integral part of the back-to-back state championship teams in 2008 and 2009, both of which finished ranked #1 in New Jersey. Continuing his baseball career at Marywood University in Scranton, Pennsylvania, he served as a two-time team captain and played a pivotal role in leading the program to its first-ever conference championship during his senior season.
With over eight years of coaching experience at Diamond Nation in New Jersey, he specialized in developing pitchers, many of whom advanced to play collegiate and professional baseball. His dedication to player development and passion for the game have made a lasting impact on the athletes he has mentored.

8U Coach & 15U Tucci Coach
Nick Correll
Nick grew up in the Nashville area and was a very accomplished amateur player. Correll attended both Nashville Christian along with playing for the Knights Academy team throughout his high school campaign. During those years he racked up impressive numbers and accolades. Correll started on varsity all four years he attended, along with leading his Knights team his senior year in batting average, doubles, and RBI’s as a hitter, along with leading the team in strikeouts and ERA as a pitcher. He was ranked in the top 10 in Perfect Game rankings in Tennessee which included being a Perfect Game All American 3 years straight. After high school, Nick attended and played at Cleveland State Community College. Correll currently coaches the 8U and 15U Tucci team here at HoJo.
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