The Yankees hired Rachel Balkovec as the manager for Tampa Tarpons. She will be the first full-time female manager in the history of affiliated baseball at the Major or Minor League levels.
Tune in now to watch Rachel Balkovec introduced as the @TampaTarpons manager for the upcoming season. Balkovec will be the first full-time female manager in the history of affiliated baseball at the Major or Minor League levels. https://t.co/qNcljr3qnZ — New York Yankees (@Yankees) January 12, 2022
A LITTLE BIT ABOUT RACHEL
Rachel started in 2012 as a temporary strength and conditioning coach for the St. Louis Cardinals minor league affiliate. She became the S&C coordinator for the minor league team in 2014 and 2015. She was the first full-time female in that field for a major league affiliate team. In 2016, she worked with the Astros organization as a strength and conditioning coordinator.
In 2018 she left to pursue her Master’s Degree. She learned Spanish to be able to communicate with players better. The Yankees hired her as a hitting coach in their minor league system in 2019. With the cancellation of the 2020 minor league season, Rachel coached in the Australian Baseball League.
Rachel Balkovec's message to young girls and women: "It's going to be hard, and GOOD. I'm glad my path was difficult, and it still serves me to this day." pic.twitter.com/X11D3d4EyB — Yankees Videos (@snyyankees) January 12, 2022
MAJOR LEAGUE CAREER?
It is great that a woman will be a full-time manager in a minor league team. However, we know at the end of the day, the Yankees hired her because they felt she was right for the job. She has developed a close relationship with people within the organization. I can see the Yankees hiring her as a coach in the majors in the future. She is an experienced hitter and catcher. She also is used to working with advanced analytics. That is certainly someone who the Yankees need in their organization.
One of her long-term goals is to be a Major League General Manager. Major League Baseball has a couple of females in the league. Alyssa Nakken is a full-time coach with the San Francisco Giants and Kim Ng is the first female general manager for the Miami Marlins. I do not doubt that Balkovec will be working at a Major League level in the future. Will her first shot in the majors be with the Yankees? That remains the question. But her skills and experience within the organization will have her in the majors in no time.
Rachel Balkovec said one of her long-term goals is to be a Major League general manager. — Bryan Hoch (@BryanHoch) January 12, 2022