San Francisco Giants make history, hire MLB's first female coach

Steve Gardner | USA TODAY

The San Francisco Giants rounded out new manager Gabe Kapler's major league staff with the historic hiring of MLB's first female, full-time coach.

Alyssa Nakken, who joined the Giants as an intern in 2014, will have the title of major league assistant coach and will work with another new hire, Mark Hallberg, to "focus their talents on helping to build a winning culture in the clubhouse," Kapler said in a statement.

Nakken played softball at Sacramento State and had previously done work for the Giants relating to the amateur draft and player development.

The hiring of Nakken and Hallberg brings the number of coaches on Kapler's staff to 13, with only one holdover -- third base coach Ron Wotus -- from last season.

MLB rules state that only seven coaches can be in uniform during games, but there are no limits on the number of coaches who can be employed at once.

Kapler, who was fired as manager of the Philadelphia Phillies last October, was hired as Giants manager a month later to succeed the retiring Bruce Bochy.

The New York Yankees also made some history of their own this offseason by hiring Rachel Balkovec as a minor league hitting coach. However, Nakken will be the first woman to work full-time with a major league team.