JOHN ROBINSON SR.
CLUB GENERAL MANAGER
For more than 14 years, John Robinson Sr. has been immersed in youth sports, building programs, developing athletes, and creating opportunities for players and families. His career combines a background in baseball, athlete performance, technology, entrepreneurship, and business operations—giving him a perspective that extends well beyond the traditional role of a club administrator.
John has played baseball at multiple levels of college competition, including Junior College, NCAA Division I, and NAIA baseball, where he was part of a league championship team after pitching a complete-game victory. He went on to compete in premier baseball leagues and major tournaments across the country, including opportunities through a former Montreal Expos scout, and earned two Strikeout King awards.
His experience on the field eventually became a passion for helping the next generation of athletes. Over the years, John has coached and trained more than 1,000 athletes, helping dozens of players reach the college level while also helping countless others earn spots on club and high school teams.
That experience led him to build organizations around a broader vision of athlete development. John founded and helped build multiple successful businesses, including BAT, an athlete training and performance organization founded in 2014. BAT combined fitness evaluation, sports science, technology, and performance training to help athletes improve the physical qualities that translate to better performance on the field.
He also founded the NY Silverbacks Baseball & Softball Club, which grew into one of the fastest-growing youth baseball organizations in Westchester County prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. Over its eight-year run, the organization grew to hundreds of players across dozens of teams and served thousands of families, combining strong community engagement with innovative programming, performance training, technology, facilities, and even a podcast featuring Major League Baseball guests.
John’s work has continued to evolve at the intersection of sports and technology. He is a co-founder of Diamond Performance Lab, focused on bringing performance intelligence, technology, and data-driven development to athletes, trainers, teams, and sports facilities. He is also a co-founder of emerging movement-assessment technology working alongside leaders across the sports industry.
Outside of baseball, John brings more than 25 years of experience in technology, business management, operations, and entrepreneurship, having founded more than seven startup companies and worked across multiple industries.
Today, as Club General Manager of the Valley Pirates Baseball Club, John’s role is focused on building the organization behind the players. He oversees the business and operational side of the club, supports staff and coaches, manages escalated customer needs, and works with community businesses and industry professionals to create partnerships and opportunities that can provide lasting value to the club and its families.
But for John, the business is ultimately about people.
He believes a successful youth sports organization should be a place where players are known, families are respected, coaches are supported, and everyone involved feels that they are part of something bigger than a team.
“My goal isn’t simply to run a baseball club. It’s to help build an organization that our players, families, coaches, partners, and community can be proud to be part of—and one that continues creating opportunities long after a season is over.”