(Cleveland) American Amanda Kamekona, a former UCLA softball star, was hired as the Cleveland Guardians’ hitting coach. Thus, she became the first woman to serve as a field coach in franchise history.
Kamekona will work at the Guardians’ spring training facility in Goodyear, Arizona and will be responsible for keeping the team’s prospects moving forward.
The 36-year-old’s hiring is part of Major League Baseball’s desire to increase female representation on its team. The Guardians have hired mental coaches for players before, but they’ve never opted to have a female coach on the field with them.
Kamekona still holds the record for most RBIs (8) in a single game with UCLA. In 2008, she led her school in most offensive categories with 14 long runs, 46 RBIs, 17 doubles, and 47 runs scored.
