Darren M. Nelson (Owner / Instructor)

Darren M. Nelson graduated Orange High School in 1983 where he was selected as an All Century League player and First Team All County player in his Senior year.

Darren spent two years at Fullerton College where he was First Team All Conference and in 1985 Team MVP. Darren then attended Chapman University where he was selected as a First Team All American. In 1987, he was also named Conference Player of the Year after hitting for the California Collegiate Conference Triple Crown – .388 Avg, 21 HR and 77 RBI’s in 54 games.

Darren was an 11th round draft selection by the St. Louis Cardinals in 1987. After having spent two years with the Cardinals and two years with the Angels, Darren started Sluggers in 1997 located in Huntington Beach.

After 12 years and over 25,000 lessons under his belt, Sluggers is still going strong. Darren resides in Huntington Beach, married to wife, Jeanette, and has two daughters (Rylee & Jaycee) and two sons (Luke & Roy).

Justin LaTempa (Private Instruction)


Justin played baseball at Huntington Beach High School and was a part of the 2004 Sunset League Champions team. In 2005, he graduated and was named with All Sunset League Honors. After high school, Justin attended UC Irvine on a baseball scholarship for two years before leaving to play at Golden West College. He played one year at Golden West College and was then drafted by the Arizona Diamondbacks in the 22nd round of the 2008 draft. Justin decided to decline professional status at that time, opting rather to play for the University of Oregon.


At the University of Oregon, he was a part of the inaugural team in 2009 and in 2010 he helped the team to a regional appearance. That season, Justin was a weekend starter and in May 2010 he was recognized as the National Pitcher of the Week for his complete game, one hit shutout against Washington State. At Oregon's first regional appearance, Justin was named to the All Regional Team for his win against the hosts U Conn. In 2010, Justin was selected by the Anaheim Angels in the 12th round of the draft. He played professionally in the Angels organization until 2012.