Charlie grew up on Chicago’s north side and played his early years at Welles Park. 

He played his high school baseball at Northside College Prep, where he was a seven letter athlete. At 16, Charlie started working part-time at BASH Sports Academy where he was able to drastically improve his skills as a catcher and a hitter. He became a baseball “gym rat”, hanging around the facility during his free-time to catch off-season bullpens for minor league pitchers, extract as much knowledge as he could from the facility’s nationally-recognized instructors and worked hard to become a better ballplayer. 

 

It all paid off when in 2008, Charlie successfully walked on to the Fighting Leathernecks Varsity baseball squad at Western Illinois University (NCAA Division 1 – Summit League). What Charlie lacked in size for a D1 catcher, he made up for in skill, quickness and baseball IQ. Unfortunately, shoulder injuries limited his collegiate career. 

 

Coaching Experience

After college, Charlie went back to BASH as an instructor, working with young catchers during camps and clinics. In addition, he became a coach for the Northside College Preparatory High School Junior Varsity and Varsity baseball programs.

In 2014, Charlie moved to the Seattle area where he was the Head Catching Instructor at the Samammish Baseball Academy, also teaching hitting and pitching. He also worked with several travel teams, including the 16U Washington State Champion North Seattle Raineers.  

In 2016, Charlie spent time in Germany to coach the Marl SlyDogs in the Bundesliga (the German professional league), as well as working with several prominent MLB and MiLB players in the off-season.