EUREKA — Tristan Butts has been a star for the Eureka Lions for the past four years on the gridiron, the hardwood and the diamond. Now, after his illustrious high school career, he's taking his talents to Whitworth University in Washington to continue playing baseball at the collegiate level.
"It starts with my parents at home, just my dad's always been my coach forever. We've watched YouTube videos and that's how I learned to hit," said the future Whitworth Pirate.
"So just them and the coaches and friends always wanting to get better, pushing you to be your best. When you're in a community like this, the coaches all push you to be your best because they know you, so they want you to succeed. So I credit to all of them — friends, family, coaches."
And for Tristan's mom, the decision to commit to Whitworth following their tour as a family couldn’t have been more surreal.
"It was like, ‘So you want to buy a sweatshirt?’ I always wanted to buy a sweatshirt, so I was like, ‘Yes,’" said Marcy Butts. "And that he loved the place as much as I love the place, and his dad, and it was all of us. It all came together, and the timing was perfect."
Having seen Tristan grow from first picking up a baseball, football and basketball when he was just a kid to becoming a three-sport varsity athlete by his junior year, Marcy has always known her son had what it takes to play at the next level.
"He's athletically gifted, but, boy, he has a drive," Marcy Butts said with a smile. "He's just got a drive, as well as athletically, academically, always wanted to be first, follow the rules, be a good person. I mean, he's pretty much the whole package. And it's just amazing and he's a good kid though, too, and so it's pretty cool that he's stayed the path."
Though Tristan had the talent to pursue other sports, he ultimately chose baseball.
"I feel like each of the sports offer their own different aspects, and baseball's just got a uniqueness about it," said Tristan Butts. "When you truly understand the game, how much more exciting it becomes than just an ordinary fan watching. They might think it's slow, but that just means they don't understand it that well. So I feel like it's just got a lot of nuance to it, and that's what makes it great."
Now in the position to fulfill his dream of playing college sports, the right-handed pitcher and utility player knows he wouldn’t be in the position he’s in without those around him.
"Everything happens for a reason. So everything that's happened, it just makes you build your character, makes you a better person moving forward," Tristan Butts said. "So all the support means a lot to get me to this point, I couldn't have done it without everyone else."
