Alyssa Nakken Becomes First Woman To Coach In On-Field Capacity During San Francisco Giants Game
(KPIX)- San Francisco Giants coach Alyssa Nakken made history during Monday night's exhibition game against the Oakland A's. The 30-year-old became the first woman to coach in an on-field capacity when she took over as first base coach in the late innings of Monday's game.
Nakken joined first-year manager Gabe Kapler's staff in January, in the process becoming the first woman to have a full-time coaching position in MLB. She has been with the organization since 2014 when she began as a baseball operations intern.
Outfielder Hunter Pence offered his congratulations on Twitter shortly after the final out of Monday's game.
Congratulations on making history! https://t.co/lDVapd3DPi
— Hunter Pence (@hunterpence) July 21, 2020
"Alyssa did a great job out there at first base today," Kapler said. "[First-base coach] Antoan [Richardson] stepped up and made sure that Alyssa continued her development as well."
Nakken, 30, often coached first base during intrasquad games at Oracle Park this summer.
"I feel a great sense of responsibility," Nakken told Giants.com in February. "Coaching, I never saw it. This job has kind of been hidden for so long. I'm so excited to be in this role for the challenge and the opportunity to make an impact for this organization that I love. But also, I'm excited that now girls can see there is a job on the field in baseball. It's really cool."
Nakken played first base for Sacramento State's softball team from 2009-12, recording three All-Conference selections and four Academic All-American nods during her collegiate career. She earned her master's degree in sport management from the University of San Francisco in 2015. Nakken joined the Giants as a baseball operations intern in 2014, serving in various front-office roles before her historic appointment to Kapler's coaching staff in January.