Rachel Balkovec, the first woman to manage in affiliated baseball, has left the New York Yankees for an even bigger task — leading the Miami Marlins’ minor-league player development, according to a league source.
Balkovec, 36, had been the Yankees’ Low-A manager for the 2022 and 2023 seasons, guiding some of the organization’s brightest prospects, including Jasson Domínguez, with whom she had an especially close relationship. Domínguez reached the majors last year at age 20. Balkovec went 122-136 with a .473 winning percentage.
“The best person on the job was Rachel. It’s a credit to her,” general manager Brian Cashman told The Athletic in 2022.
The Yankees hired Balkovec as a minor-league hitting coach in November 2019. She had previously worked with the Houston Astros and St. Louis Cardinals in strength and conditioning.
Balkovec was a softball catcher at Creighton University and the University of New Mexico, graduating with a degree in exercise science.
She joins the Marlins as the club undergoes changes in its front office. GM Kim Ng departed after owner Bruce Sherman planned to hire a president of baseball operations to work as her boss. Ultimately, the team hired Peter Bendix from the Tampa Bay Rays to fill the role of president. The team had let go of Geoff…
