San Jose Giants Announce 2013 Coaching Staff

SAN JOSE, CA- The San Jose Giants announced their 2013 coaching staff today with Andy Skeels returning for his fourth year as manager. Skeels previously served as San Jose's manager during the 2009, 2011 and 2012 seasons. Pitching coach Mike Couchee and hitting coach Lipso Nava have joined the Giants staff while Dave Getsoff returns as athletic trainer and Dustin Brooks as strength and conditioning coach.

Skeels, 47, is set to begin his eighth season in the San Francisco Giants organization. He has won two league championships in five seasons as a manager, claiming the 2008 South Atlantic League title as skipper of the Augusta GreenJackets and the 2009 California League crown with San Jose. The Giants have qualified for the playoffs in all three years with Skeels at the helm. The 2009 squad set a franchise record with 93 victories en route to the championship before a 90-win campaign in 2011 that earned the Giants the Class A Advanced Team of the Year Award from MiLB.com. Last season, San Jose posted a North Division-best 75-65 overall record. Skeels boasts an outstanding .614 winning percentage as Giants manager while his 258 career wins are second-most in team history.

Skeels' 2008 Augusta club finished with the best record (88-50) in Minor League Baseball among full-season teams. He also served as manager for the Double-A Richmond Flying Squirrels in 2010. Skeels joined the San Francisco organization in 2006 and initially spent two years as Augusta's hitting coach.

Earlier this year, Skeels managed New Zealand to a second-place finish in a World Baseball Classic qualifier tournament. New Zealand won two games in their first-ever appearance in the WBC before falling to host Taiwan in the championship game.

Skeels was an All-American at the University of Arkansas before the San Diego Padres selected him in the seventh round of the 1987 draft. The former catcher spent 12 years playing professional baseball with the Padres, Los Angeles Dodgers and New York Yankees organizations, including stints in the California League with the Riverside Red Wave (1988-89), Salinas Spurs (1992) and Rancho Cucamonga Quakes (1993). Skeels advanced as high as Triple-A before embarking on a career in coaching.

Couchee enters his first season as pitching coach for the San Jose Giants after a one-year stint in the same role with the Arizona Rookie League Giants. 2013 marks Couchee's second season in the Giants organization. Couchee previously spent nine years in the San Diego Padres organization, including eight seasons as their Minor League Pitching Coordinator from 2004-2011 and one year as pitching coach for Triple-A Portland in 2003. He also spent 10 seasons as the California/Anaheim Angels Minor League Pitching Coordinator from 1993-2002 after a five-year stint as a pitching coach in their organization. Couchee began his coaching career with Double-A Tulsa in the Texas farm system during the 1986-87 seasons.

Couchee was originally drafted by San Diego in 1980 and pitched briefly in the major leagues with the Padres in 1983 (eight games, 0-1 record, 5.14 ERA).

Nava begins his sixth year in the San Francisco organization and first season as San Jose's hitting coach. Nava spent the last two seasons as Augusta's manager after a three-year stint as the GreenJackets' hitting coach. Under Nava's direction, Augusta's 2011 team won the second half Southern Division title and earned a spot in the playoffs. His two-year managerial record was 139-138 (.502).

Nava was originally a 14th round selection by the Seattle Mariners in the 1990 draft. The former infielder played seven years professionally with the Mariners (1990-94), Boston Red Sox (1995) and Chicago Cubs (1997), advancing as high as the Triple-A level.

Getsoff begins his second season as San Jose's athletic trainer and his fifth year in the Giants organization. Prior to coming to San Jose, he served two seasons as athletic trainer for the Augusta GreenJackets after one year in the same role with the Salem-Keizer Volcanoes. Brooks enters his second season with the San Jose Giants as strength and conditioning coach and third year in the organization.

The San Jose Giants begin their 2013 season on Thursday, April 4 at Visalia with the home opener set for Thursday, April 11 against the Rawhide. The Opening Night Extravaganza will include a postgame fireworks show, 2013 magnet schedule giveaway and more. The Giants will also feature home games on Mother's Day (May 12), Memorial Day (May 27), Independence Day (July 4) and Labor Day (September 2). On June 18, for the first time ever, Municipal Stadium will host the 2013 California-Carolina League All-Star Game. Season tickets are available for purchase online at sjgiants.com, over the phone at (408) 297-1435 and in person at the Municipal Stadium Box Office Monday through Friday from 9:00 AM to 6:00 PM.