The San Francisco Giants announced their player development staff for the 2018 season. The most interesting new name is former Giants playoff hero Travis Ishikawa, who is re-joining the club in the Arizona Rookie League as a hitting coach. The full press release is below.
Via San Francisco Giants:
SAN FRANCISCO, CA – San Francisco Giants club Senior Vice President and General Manager Bobby Evans announced today the club’s player development staff for the 2018 season.
“We are adding more resources, including coaches, medical staff, sports science and analytical support to our player development team to put our minor league players in the best possible position to succeed at all levels and ultimately help us win at the Major League level,” said Evans. “Under David Bell’s leadership we are excited about this direction. David’s done a tremendous job in a short amount of time building a strong and committed player development staff. His energy and focus has helped prepare us for a strong year ahead.”
“We are thrilled to have a staff that is aligned to provide leadership and support with a team-first approach,” said Vice President of Player Development David Bell. “We are excited to build on the hard work and past success of our player development system and look forward to contributing to this great organization.”
San Francisco’s 2018 player development staff:
SACRAMENTO (AAA)
Manager…………………………………………………………………………………………………. Dave Brundage
Pitching Coach…………………………………………………………………………………………. Steve Kline
Hitting Coach…………………………………………………………………………………………… Damon Minor
Fundamentals Coach…………………………………………………………………………………. Nestor Rojas
Athletic Trainer………………………………………………………………………………………… David Getsoff
Strength and Conditioning Coach…………………………………………………………………. Andy King
Bullpen Catcher / Administration…………………………………………………………………. Travis Higgs
RICHMOND (AA)
Manager…………………………………………………………………………………………………. Willie Harris
Pitching Coach…………………………………………………………………………………………. Glenn Dishman
Hitting Coach…………………………………………………………………………………………… Francisco Morales
Athletic Trainer………………………………………………………………………………………… Hiro Sato
Strength and Conditioning Coach…………………………………………………………………. Jon Medici
Bullpen Catcher / Administration…………………………………………………………………. Eliezer Zambrano
SAN JOSE (A)
Manager…………………………………………………………………………………………………. Lipso Nava
Pitching Coach…………………………………………………………………………………………. Matt Yourkin
Hitting Coach…………………………………………………………………………………………… Wilfredo Romero
Fundamentals Coach ………………………………………………………………………………… Gary Davenport
Athletic Trainer………………………………………………………………………………………… Ryo Watanabe
Strength and Conditioning Coach…………………………………………………………………. Mark Spadavecchia
Bullpen Catcher / Administration…………………………………………………………………. CJ Picerni
AUGUSTA (A)
Manager…………………………………………………………………………………………………. Jolbert Cabrera
Pitching Coach…………………………………………………………………………………………. Clayton Rapada
Hitting Coach…………………………………………………………………………………………… Thomas Neal
Fundamentals Coach ………………………………………………………………………………… Ydwin Villegas
Athletic Trainer………………………………………………………………………………………… Vito Maffei
Strength and Conditioning Coach…………………………………………………………………. Jesse White
Bullpen Catcher / Administration…………………………………………………………………. Michael Johnson
SALEM KEIZER (SHORT-SEASON)
Manager…………………………………………………………………………………………………. Hector Borg
Pitching Coach…………………………………………………………………………………………. Dwight Bernard
Hitting Coach…………………………………………………………………………………………… Pending
Fundamentals Coach…………………………………………………………………………………. Mark Hallberg
Athletic Trainer………………………………………………………………………………………… Charlene Wichman
Strength and Conditioning Coach…………………………………………………………………. Joe Palazzolo
ARIZONA ROOKIE #1
Manager…………………………………………………………………………………………………. Carlos Valderrama
Pitching Coach …………………………………………………………………………………………. Lee Smith
Pitching Coach…………………………………………………………………………………………. Mario Rodriguez
Hitting Coach…………………………………………………………………………………………… Travis Ishikawa
Assistant Coordinator of Minor League Medical / AZL1…………………………………….. Garrett Havig
Assistant Coordinator of Minor League Strength and Conditioning / AZL1 …………… Adam Vish
ARIZONA ROOKIE #2
Manager / Extended Spring Coordinator……………………………………………………….. Billy Horton
Pitching Coach…………………………………………………………………………………………. Michael Couchee
Hitting Coach…………………………………………………………………………………………… Doug Clark
Coordinator of Fundamentals……………………………………………………………………… Tom Trebelhorn
Athletic Trainer………………………………………………………………………………………… Chris Gorosics
Strength and Conditioning Coach…………………………………………………………………. Pending
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DOMINICAN SUMMER LEAGUE
Manager…………………………………………………………………………………………………. Jose Montilla
Pitching Coach…………………………………………………………………………………………. Marcos Aguasvivas
Pitching Coach…………………………………………………………………………………………. Osiris Matos
Hitting Coach…………………………………………………………………………………………… Pending
Hitting Coach…………………………………………………………………………………………… Juan Parra
Coach…………………………………………………………………………………………………….. Lisandro King
Coach ……………………………………………………………………………………………………. Hector Ortiz
Coach ……………………………………………………………………………………………………. Jose Medina
Athletic Trainer………………………………………………………………………………………… Aquiles Torrealba
Strength and Conditioning Coach…………………………………………………………………. Alfonso Tusent
Bios for New Player Development Staff
Alan Zinter – Assistant Director Player Development – Offense
Zinter was the San Diego Padres’ hitting coach in both 2016 and 2017 after having served as the assistant hitting coach for the Houston Astros in 2015. Prior to working with the Astros he was the Cleveland Indians minor league hitting coordinator from 2012-14, and served as a minor league hitting coach for the Arizona Diamondbacks from 2008-11. Zinter was a first round selection by the New York Mets in 1989. He played 19 seasons in the minors, and played parts of two seasons in the majors with the Houston Astros (2002) and Arizona Diamondbacks (2004). He collected his first Major League hit and home run as a pinch hitter on July 1, 2002. Over 19 minor league seasons, he hit .258 BA with 250 home runs, 280 doubles and 931 RBIs. Zinter resides in Gilbert, AZ with his wife Yvonne and their two children, son Michael and daughter Franklynn.
Matt Buschmann – Assistant Director Player Development – Run Prevention
Buschmann will be assuming his first player development position in professional baseball after spending 11 years in the minors with San Diego (2006-11), Tampa Bay (2012-13, 2015), Oakland (2014) Cincinnati (2015), Baltimore (2015) and Arizona (2016). He made his Major League debut at 32 years of age for the Arizona Diamondbacks, making three appearances with a 2.08 ERA and three strikeouts over 4.1 innings. Over his minor league career, Buschmann accumulated a 92-79 W-L record with a 4.20 ERA and 1.37 WHIP over 307 games (239 started), totaling 1,189 strikeouts over 1,468.2 innings. He was drafted in the 15th round of the 2006 amateur player draft as a senior out of Vanderbilt University.
Dave Hansen – Hitting Coordinator
Hansen spent the 2016 and 2017 seasons as the Los Angeles Angels hitting coach after previously serving as their assistant hitting coach in 2014 and 2015. He also was the Seattle Mariners hitting coach in 2013, and the Dodgers’ hitting coach for 2011 and 2012. Hansen played 15 seasons at the Major League level for the Dodgers (1990-1997 and 1999-2002), Padres (2003-2004) and Mariners (2004-2005). Hansen posted a career .260 batting average, with 187 runs scored, 79 doubles, 35 home runs and 222 RBI, setting a Major League record for most pinch-hit home runs in a season with seven in 2000.
Julio Rangel – Pitching Coordinator
Rangel spent the 2016 and 2017 seasons as the Cleveland Indians Assistant Field Coordinator, having previously served as their Lower Level Pitching Coordinator from 2007-15 and the Indians’ Latin America Players Cultural/Baseball Mental Skills Coordinator from 2007-10. Part of his role as Assistant Field Coordinator was implementing Player Development initiatives at the Indian’s new Dominican Academy and overseeing the player development and day-to-day operation of the Academy. He also organized spring training and the instructional league program for the Indians as Assistant Field Coordinator. Throughout his time with the Indians, Rangel helped plan new initiatives for the pitching department and player development across all levels. He also was an interim coach for the AAA Columbus Clippers in 2012 and coached for the Tampa Yankees in 2001. Hailing from Panamá, Rangel played seven seasons of minor league baseball with the New York Yankees from 1994-2000, totaling a 33-24 W-L record with 417 strikeouts and a 3.66 ERA over 498.2 innings.
Justin Lehr – Rehab Pitching Coordinator
Lehr most recently worked as an amateur scout for the Kansas City Royals after serving as a professional scout for the Houston Astros until 2014. He last played affiliated baseball with the Cincinnati Reds, pitching from 2008-11 with the Major League club and the triple-A Louisville Bats. In 2009, Lehr started 11 games and went 5-3 with a 5.37 ERA for Cincinnati, throwing a complete game shutout against the Chicago Cubs on August 5, 2009. He was originally drafted in the 8th round out of USC by the Oakland Athletics in 1999, and pitched in relief for the A’s and Milwaukee Brewers. Over his pitching career, he made 77 Major League appearances, totaling 84 strikeouts and a 5.35 ERA in 148.0 innings.
Dan O’Brien – Development Coach
O’Brien’s primary areas of focus will be leadership, team-building, communication and personal growth to support player development. He played two seasons for UC San Diego in 1994-95, leading the Tritons to a 33-8 record and a third place finish at the Division III College World Series in his first year with the team. After graduating from UC San Diego with a degree in communications in 1995, O’Brien served as a player/coach with the Greenville Bluesman. He became head coach of the UCSD Tritons for the 1998 – 2011 season. His career record at USCD was 454-283-1 (.616). He led the team to five CCAA Championships, six consecutive NCAA Regional Appearances (2006 – 2011), back to back College World Series appearances (2009, 2010) and was named the National Coach of the Year in ’09-10. He left for Santa Clara University in 2012. At Santa Clara, O’Brien compiled a 128-194 mark. He led the Broncos to the 2014 WCC Tournament. During his time at Santa Clara there were eight players, including five in the last two seasons, selected in the MLB Draft. In that six-year span, there were 21 all-league honorees and 11 members of the WCC All-Academic team. Also while at Santa Clara he was the owner of “Relentless Development Academy” LLC and is the current owner of “TEN90 Coaching Group” LLC. He is also a member of the ABCA “Ethics in Coaching” committee.
PLAYER DEVELOPMENT STAFF
Vice President of Player Development…………………………………………………………. David Bell
Special Assistant to the General Manager……………………………………………………… Jack Hiatt
Special Assistant, Player Development…………………………………………………………. Gene Clines
Special Assistant, Player Development…………………………………………………………. Joe Amalfitano
Assistant Director of Player Development – Offense……………………………………….. Alan Zinter
Assistant Director of Player Development – Run Prevention……………………………… Matt Buschmann
Assistant Director of Player Development – Instruction……………………………………. Kyle Haines
Assistant Director of Player Development – Medical………………………………………… Geoff Head
Assistant Director of Player Development – Administration………………………………. Eric Flemming
Player Development, Analyst……………………………………………………………………… Michael Gries
Coordinator of Fundamentals……………………………………………………………………… Tom Trebelhorn
Hitting Coordinator…………………………………………………………………………………… Dave Hansen
Pitching Coordinator…………………………………………………………………………………. Julio Rangel
Rehab Pitching Coordinator………………………………………………………………………… Justin Lehr
Infield Coordinator……………………………………………………………………………………. Alvaro Espinoza
Outfield and Baserunning Coordinator………………………………………………………….. Vince Coleman
Catching Coordinator………………………………………………………………………………… Billy Hayes
Coordinator of Minor League Trainers………………………………………………………….. L.J. Petra
Coordinator of Minor League Strength and Conditioning………………………………….. Brad Lawson
Latin American Medical Development Coordinator…………………………………………. Mark Gruesbeck
Assistant Coordinator of Minor League Medical / AZL1…………………………………….. Garrett Havig
Assistant Coordinator of Minor League Strength and Conditioning / AZL1 …………… Adam Vish
Arizona Physical Therapist………………………………………………………………………….. Frank Perez
Arizona Physical Therapist………………………………………………………………………….. Kyle Belski
PLAYER DEVELOPMENT SUPPORT STAFF
Senior Coordinator of Arizona Minor League Operations………………………………….. Gabriel Alvarez
Coordinator of Education and Cultural Development……………………………………….. Laura Nunez
Development Coach…………………………………………………………………………………. Dan O’Brien
Arizona Field Operations Manager……………………………………………………………….. Josh Warstler
Peak Performance Coordinator…………………………………………………………………… Jim Afremow
