After becoming the first woman to manage a minor league affiliate team, leading the Low-A club of the Yankees during the last two seasons, Rachel Balkovec agreed to become director of player development for the Miami Marlinsaccording to MLB.com.
Balkovec previously indicated that he aspires to be a general manager in the future, so moving from the bench to a front office role would seem to align with that goal.
Balkovec, 36, joined the New York Yankees organization in November 2019 as a minor league hitting coach after working as a minor league strength and conditioning coach for the Cardinals and Astros.
He managed the Tampa Tarpons, the Yankees’ Single-A affiliate, where he went 122-136.
Balkovec takes over a Marlins system that has grown solid pitchers in the majors in recent years but has struggled to develop position players.
She is the latest hire of new Marlins general manager Peter Bendix, who replaced Kim Ng, who was the first female general manager in Major League Baseball and left the team last year after an unexpected playoff appearance.
Balkovec was a catcher for Creighton’s softball team before eventually transferring to New Mexico. He earned a master’s degree in kinesiology from LSU in 2012, then a second master’s degree in human movement sciences from Vrije University in the Netherlands in 2018.
Balkovec will now be tasked with overseeing the Marlins’ player development department, using his years of minor league experience to help Bendix, Kanthan and Kapler build another playoff team in 2024.
