Giants' Nakken becomes 1st woman to coach on-field in regular-season MLB game

Alyssa Nakken made major league history as the first female coach on the field in a regular-season game when she took her spot for the San Francisco Giants on Tuesday night against San Diego.

Nakken came in to coach first base for the Giants in the third inning after Antoan Richardson was ejected.

When she was announced as Richardson's replacement, Nakken received a warm ovation from the crowd at Oracle Park, and a congratulatory handshake from Padres first baseman Eric Hosmer.

The Giants won 13-2.

San Francisco manager Gabe Kapler said Nakken had "prepared for this moment" while working with Richardson and others.

"So it's not a foreign spot on the field for her. She does so many other things well that aren't seen," he said. "So it's nice to see her kind of be right there in the spotlight and do it on the field."

Nakken is an assistant coach who works heavily with baserunning and outfield defence. She watches games from an indoor batting cage near the steps to the dugout — and has a Giants jersey nearby, just in case she needs it.

And in an instant Tuesday night, she needed it.

The 31-year-old Nakken jogged onto the field four days after Rachel Balkovec became the first woman to manage a minor league affiliate of an Major League Baseball team. She guided the New York Yankees' Class A Tampa club to a win in her first game.

Nakken had previously coached the position in spring training and during part of a July 2020 exhibition game at Oakland against now-Padres manager Bob Melvin when he was skipper of the Athletics. She started at first again a night later against the A's in San Francisco as the teams prepared for the pandemic-delayed season.

"You feel a sense of pride to be out there," Nakken said at the time. "Me personally, it's the best place to watch a game, that's for sure."

The former Sacramento State softball star, whose blond braid hung out from her orange protective helmet Tuesday, became the first female coach in the big leagues when she was hired for Kapler's staff in January 2020.

The baseball Hall of Fame and Museum already received a jersey from Nakken's moment two years ago to go to Cooperstown, New York, and now the Hall might be reaching out once more.

At Sacramento State from 2009-2012, Nakken was a three-time all-conference player at first base and four-time Academic All American. She went on to earn a master's degree in sport management from the University of San Francisco in 2015 after interning with the Giants' baseball operations department a year earlier.

From Day One with the Giants, Nakken embraced her role as an example for girls and women that they can do anything.

"It's a big deal," she said. "I feel a great sense of responsibility and I feel it's my job to honour those who have helped me to where I am."