Sf Giants Name Gabe Kapler As 39th Manager In Club History

SAN FRANCISCO — The San Francisco Giants announced today that they have named Gabe Kapler the 39^th field manager in Giants history by agreeing to terms on a three-year contract.

“Our top priority in the next manager was to find someone who can build strong relationships with our players, coaches, front office and fans, and someone who has the drive and desire to win,” said Giants President of Baseball Operations Farhan Zaidi.  “After an exhaustive and comprehensive search, we are delighted to welcome Gabe Kapler as the next manager of the San Francisco Giants.

“In my personal experience in working with Gabe, there is no one who works harder and is more committed to getting the best out of the people around him.  This was also echoed in the feedback we received around the baseball community.  I look forward to working with Gabe to help return the Giants to its winning tradition,” continued Zaidi.

Kapler, 44, spent the past two seasons as the manager of the Philadelphia Phillies where he guided them to a 161-163 (.497) combined record. In his first season, 2018, Kapler’s Phillies finished 80-82, a 14-win improvement from 2017. This year’s Phillies finished 81-81, reaching the .500 mark for the first time since 2012.

Prior to joining the Phillies, Kapler was the Director of Player Development for the Los Angeles Dodgers from November 2014 until he was named the Phillies manager in October 2017. During those three seasons overseeing the Dodgers minor league system (2015-2017), their minor league clubs went a combined 1,299-1,128 (.535) that included eight first-place finishes. The .535 winning percentage over that span was the fourth-best among all Major League teams and the second-best among National League clubs, trailing the Phillies .548 mark in that span.

In 2013, Kapler served as a coach for Team Israel during the World Baseball Classic qualifiers. From 2011-2013, he served as a special assignment scout for the Tampa Bay Rays. He began his coaching career in 2007, taking a season out of his playing career to serve as the manager of Class-A Greenville of the South Atlantic League in Boston’s minor league system.

As a player, Kapler played in parts of 12 seasons in the Majors from 1998-2010 with Detroit (1998-1999), Texas (2000-2002), Colorado (2002), Boston (2003-2006), Milwaukee (2008) and Tampa Bay (2009-2010). A former 57^th-round pick by Detroit in 1995, Kapler batted .268 over 1,104 career games with 176 doubles, 82 home runs and 386 RBI.

In 2004, Kapler played in a career-best 136 games while hitting .272 for the eventual World Champion Boston Red Sox.

His playing career also included a 38-game stint for the Yomiuri Giants of the Nippon Professional League in 2005 before returning to Boston later that season.Kapler will be introduced to the media at 12 p.m. tomorrow during a press conference at Oracle Park. A media advisory will be e-mailed out later this evening.

The post SF GIANTS NAME GABE KAPLER AS 39TH MANAGER IN CLUB HISTORY first appeared on SF Giants Rumors.