Lake County Captains Announce 2025 Coaching Staff
EASTLAKE, Ohio – In conjunction with the Cleveland Guardians, the Lake County Captains today announced their coaching staff for the 2025 season. Lake County’s staff will once again be led by Manager Omir Santos, who returns as the Captains’ skipper for his third season. Ordomar Valdez returns as Lake County’s
EASTLAKE, Ohio – In conjunction with the Cleveland Guardians, the Lake County Captains today announced their coaching staff for the 2025 season.
Lake County’s staff will once again be led by Manager Omir Santos, who returns as the Captains’ skipper for his third season. Ordomar Valdez returns as Lake County’s Hitting Coach for his second season, while Strength & Conditioning Coach Andrew Coleman and Head Athletic Trainer Frank Sammons return to their respective roles for their second seasons as well.
The Captains also welcome three new staff additions for the 2025 campaign. Yan Rivera returns to the team as Bench Coach for his second season after serving this role for Lake County’s 2022 Midwest League runner-up squad. Also, Andrew Moore joins the Captains as Pitching Coach after serving as Assistant Pitching Coach for the Triple-A Columbus Clippers in 2024. Finally, Laura Gutiérrez-Sogel joins the team as Assistant Athletic Trainer after serving as an Athletic Trainer Intern at the Guardians’ Goodyear, Ariz. complex in 2024.
Santos has been Lake County’s manager since the 2023 campaign, and enters his eighth season as a coach in the Guardians organization. The 43-year-old owns a 142-117 (.548) record in his first two seasons as the Captains’ skipper, and guided the team to its second Midwest League Championship in franchise history last year. The 2024 Captains produced four Midwest League All-Stars and were named Baseball America’s MiLB Team of the Year.
A former Major League catcher, Santos played five MLB seasons across four teams from 2008 through 2013. His most notable year was in 2009, when he batted .260 with 73 hits, 14 doubles, seven home runs, and 40 RBI in 96 games with the New York Mets. He also spent 2013 with the Cleveland organization, playing 62 games with the Triple-A Columbus Clippers and one game with Cleveland.
Rivera enters his fourth season as a coach in the Cleveland organization. He most recently served as Manager of the 2024 Arizona Complex League Guardians, who finished the year 27-33. The 29-year-old joined the Guardians organization in 2022 as the Captains’ Bench Coach, then served the same role with the Single-A Lynchburg Hillcats the following year.
As a player, Rivera was selected by the Toronto Blue Jays in the 36th round of the 2014 MLB Draft out of Notre Dame High School in Caguas, Puerto Rico. However, he elected to play collegiately at La Salle University (PA). The former shortstop recorded 62 hits, 11 doubles, two triples, three home runs, 22 RBI, and 20 stolen bases in a combined 137 games across four seasons with the Explorers from 2015 through 2018.
Rivera is the son of Lake County’s first-ever manager Luis Rivera) (2003-04), who was named the 2003 South Atlantic League Manager of the Year after leading the Captains to the South Atlantic League Finals in their inaugural season. He is the franchise’s all-time winningest skipper with 170 victories, and eventually spent a combined 17 seasons as an MLB coach before retiring following the 2023 season.
Moore enters his second season as a coach in the Guardians organization. The 30-year-old most recently served as Assistant Pitching Coach for the Triple-A Columbus Clippers in 2024. His pitching staff led the International League in holds, while ranking top-five in: fewest hits allowed (second), wins (third), opposing batting average (tied for third), fewest hit-by-pitches (tied for third), saves (tied for fourth), complete games (tied for fourth), and strikeouts (fifth). The unit also ranked seventh in ERA, as the Clippers were the International League runners-up.
Moore brings extensive playing experience to Lake County’s coaching staff as well. After being selected 72nd overall in the 2015 MLB Draft by the Seattle Mariners, the former right-hander pitched in MiLB for seven seasons and was named a Seattle MiLB.com Organization All-Star in 2015 and 2016. He eventually made his MLB debut with the Mariners in 2017, recording 33 strikeouts to nine walks in a combined 12 appearances (10 starts) across the 2017 and 2019 campaigns. Moore also played three collegiate seasons at Oregon State, where in 2013 he was named a First Team All-American by both Baseball America and the ABCA, as well as the Pac-12 Freshman of the Year.
Valdez enters his fourth season as a coach in the Cleveland organization. The 30-year-old most recently served as the Captains’ Hitting Coach in 2024. Last year, his Lake County hitters led the Midwest League in: runs (632), RBI (584), walks (588), on-base percentage (.342), and OPS (.713), while also setting a franchise-record with 201 doubles. He helped guide C Cooper Ingle (MVP) and SS Angel Genao to Midwest League All-Star campaigns.
As a player, Valdez signed with the Cleveland organization in 2010 as an international free agent out of San Pedro de Macoris, Dominican Republic. The former primary infielder played in the Cleveland Player Development System from 2011 through 2016, advancing as far as Triple-A. This included suiting up for the Captains in 2015 and 2016, recording 95 hits, 13 doubles, three triples, one home run, 29 RBI, and 33 stolen bases in 140 combined games with Lake County.
Coleman enters his third season with the Guardians organization. He served as the Captains’ Strength & Conditioning Coach last year, and was the Single-A Lynchburg Hillcats’ Strength & Conditioning Coordinator in 2023.
Prior to his time with the Cleveland organization, Coleman was an Assistant Director of Strength & Conditioning at Florida Atlantic University, and a Graduate Assistant Athletic Performance Coach at Gardner-Webb University (NC). He earned his bachelor’s degree in wellness and sports medicine in 2016 from Averett University (VA), and his master’s degree in sports education in 2019 from Gardner-Webb.
Sammons enters his seventh season with the Cleveland organization. He served as Lake County’s Head Athletic Trainer last year, and was the Single-A Lynchburg Hillcats’ Athletic Trainer in 2022 and 2023. Sammons was also the Athletic Trainer for Cleveland’s Dominican Summer League 2 team in 2021. He earned his bachelor’s degree in athletic training in 2018 from Manchester University (IN).
Gutiérrez-Sogel enters her second season with the Guardians organization. She most recently served as an Athletic Trainer Intern last year at Cleveland’s complex in Goodyear, Ariz.
Gutiérrez-Sogel brings over four years of combined physical therapy and athletic training experience to Lake County. This includes working with C.D. Getafe Femenino, a professional women’s soccer team in Spain, for nearly three years. She earned her bachelor’s degree in physiotherapy in 2021 and master’s degree in athletic training and therapy in 2024 from Camilo José Cela University in Madrid, Spain.
The Captains will begin their 2025 season with a three-game road series against the Great Lakes Loons. First pitch for Lake County’s season opener is scheduled for Friday, April 4 at 6:05 p.m. from Dow Diamond in Midland, Mich.
The Lake County Captains are the professional High-A Affiliate of the Cleveland Guardians located in Eastlake, Ohio. Our mission is to honor the rich history of our organization, while also introducing baseball to a new generation of fans through innovative means. We are committed to supporting our community, sports teams, and each other by demonstrating passion and having fun every day.