Chris McCoy never thought he would be doing what he is today. It happened by accident, and he couldn't be happier with the results.

"I was following my heart," McCoy said.

McCoy, now a senior, came to the UW as a freshman member of the baseball team. After a short time pitching for UW, McCoy discovered his passion was not in playing, but in coaching.

It all began when McCoy taught a lesson in pitching to members of his fraternity, Phi Gamma Delta (Fiji), with the motivation of a typical student — to earn a little extra money.

After the success of the lesson, he decided to put together a 95-page pitching manual, which he bound and printed at the local Ave Copy Center. Taking a chance, McCoy sold the manual on Ebay.

Starting with an initial investment of $25, his sales soon multiplied, and he discovered demand was greater than he had imagined.

"The training industry in baseball has a lot of room for improvement," McCoy said.

This led to the creation of a two-hour instructional DVD, also sold on Ebay. At this point, McCoy decided to expand his business by purchasing the web URL pitchsmarter.com.

He recruited an intern to develop the Web site, and began learning to build a company from the ground up. He continued teaching lessons and clinics, which allowed him to meet many successful local business professionals, whose children he was coaching.

Through the general studies program, McCoy created his own major, social entrepreneurship, which allowed him to learn necessary skills through multiple disciplines.

Through his coursework in the business school, McCoy connected with John Castle, an entrepreneurship lecturer. Castle helped him perfect a business plan and provided mentorship for McCoy's growing business.

"He's persistent as anybody I have ever met," said Castle, who considers persistence a critical skill for entrepreneurs.

Castle described McCoy as a quick learner who excels at taking feedback and using it to fix problems.

"He doesn't always like what I say," Castle said. "[But] he absorbs the things that he doesn't like to hear."

McCoy's company, called A to Z Sports, now boasts a tightly knit staff of nearly 30, including multiple interns from the UW.

"Any kind of live hands-on experience is the only way you can truly learn about entrepreneurship," Castle said. "[Interns] are learning that in spades from working with [Chris]."

Operating out of a basement in Wallingford and a Tully's with free Internet access,

A to Z Sports now includes the I Love Baseball Foundation, a non-profit that uses baseball to enrich communities, Pitch Smarter and Total Amateur Sports Network.

McCoy's goal now is to "build a world-class Internet brand."

But McCoy's business is about more than baseball.

"Sports can be used as a tool to change the world," he said.

Coming from humble beginnings, he realizes what sports can do for athletes and the community.

Through the ups and downs of building a business, McCoy remains an optimistic realist, and an inspiring one at that.

"He has a very engulfing personality where his passion for life touches everyone who he crosses paths with," said Sarah Couch, a long-term marketing intern. "His energy for life is contagious."

Right now, McCoy is happy with his choice, and has turned down interviews with other companies, such as Microsoft, in order to follow his dream.

He said it's not about the money or success, but about working with the people you love and making the world a better place.

"You don't know what's around the corner," he said.

Reach reporter Michelle Zimmer at news@thedaily.washington.edu.