Baseball

baseball@destinhigh.org | 850-204-4044

Coach Bonilla is the son of former MLB Player, Juan Bonilla Sr. And grew up knowing nothing but baseball. Juan Sr. played college baseball at FSU in the late 70’s and broke into the big leagues in 1981 with the San Diego Padres. Juan Sr. Retired from baseball in 1988 finishing up with the New York Yankees.

Coach Bonilla is originally from Tallahassee, FL. He moved to the Panhandle area with his parents and sister in 1995, where he attended Crestview High School graduating in 1997. During Coach Bonilla’s time at CHS he was a catcher, 3rd baseman, and Pitcher, and hit over .500. Prior to his senior season, Coach Bonilla was fortunate to earn a scholarship to the JUCO Powerhouse, Chipola Junior College, under Junior College Hall of Fame Coach, Jeff Johnson. After a superb Senior season at Crestview, Coach Bonilla earned the tremendous honor of being named the Florida 5A Co-Player of the year. He was also selected in the 36th round of the 1997 MLB draft.

Electing not to sign with Baltimore, Coach Bonilla went on to play one season under coach Jeff Johnson at Chipola. During that season, the team earned a spot in the state tournament. Coach Bonilla was selected as team MVP for the season. 

After a successful season with Chipola, Coach Bonilla decided to sign with the Orioles. At the end of coach Bonilla’s 2nd pro season, he suffered a knee injury that would end his professional career in 2000.

Following his time with the Orioles organization, Coach Bonilla stayed in the Crestview area for a few years. He then decided it would be ideal to join the military, and signed up with the US Army. Coach Bonilla spent 8 years in the Army and took part in 3 Combat Deployments between Iraq and Afghanistan. Subsequent to leaving the Army in 2015, Coach Bonilla decided to move back to Crestview, and concluded that 17 years away from baseball was enough. He was able to return to baseball through coaching at Niceville High School.

During Coach Bonilla’s time at Niceville High School (2017-2022) as Varsity Assistant Coach, his primary roles included the development of catchers, 3rd and 1st basemen. He also served as 1st base coach every season. Coach Bonilla was fortunate enough to be a part of all winning seasons, but takes greater pride in the development of several players each year that went on to play baseball at the next level, and even a few that made it into the Pros.