Andy Fox Returns as Curve Manager for 2026

CURVE, PA – The Pittsburgh Pirates and Altoona Curve are pleased to announce the 2026 Coaching Staff for the upcoming season in Curve, PA, headlined by the return of Manager Andy Fox.

“We’re thrilled to have so many returning staff members on our coaching staff,” said Curve General Manager Nate Bowen. “After getting a taste of the postseason last year, I am excited to see what this group can do in Curve, PA in 2026!”

Fox is the 16^th Manager in Altoona’s franchise history and led the Curve to a 39-30 record in the Second Half and a postseason appearance in 2025. Fox is the first Manager to hold the role for at least two seasons since Michael Ryan led the club from 2017-19.

The 2026 Curve coaching staff also features Pitching Coaches Kevin Walker and David Perez, Hitting Coaches Scott Seabol and Justin Orton, and Bench Coach Gary Green. Orton returns to the Altoona staff after serving as the team’s Integrated Baseball Performance Coach in 2024 and as a Hitting Coach with Single-A Bradenton in 2025. Green returns for his fifth season on the Curve staff, third in a row, and his 21^st season as an instructor in the Pirates minor league system.

Walker is in his first season as an instructor in the Pirates minor league system after serving as the Boston Red Sox Bullpen coach in 2024, while Perez joins the team after spending the 2025 season as a Pitching Lead in the Pirates Dominican Complex.

Rounding out the coaching staff is Athletic Trainer Coleman Duke, Strength & Conditioning Coach Ryoji Ejima, Minor League Operations Assistant Richie Saville, Clubhouse Manager Nick Mote and Dietitian Stephanie Xavier.

Fox, a former Major League infielder and outfielder with the New York Yankees, Arizona Diamondbacks, Florida Marlins, Montral Expos and Texas Rangers begins his second season working in the Pirates minor league system. A native of Sacramento, California, Fox earned a pair of World Series Championship rings during his playing career with the Yankees in 1996 and Marlins in 2003.

Drafted by the New York Yankees in the second round (45^th overall) out of Christian Brothers High School in Sacramento, Fox played parts of nine major league seasons: totaling 776 games. Fox was known best for his versatility on the diamond, appearing at seven different positions during his major and minor league career. Fox’s playing career ended following the 2005 season with the LA Angels Triple-A affiliate in Salt Lake.

Fox’s coaching career has seen him serve in several roles with the Rangers, Mariners, Marlins and Red Sox. His journey began as the Manager for the Texas Rangers with their Single-A affiliate in Clinton in 2006 where he spent one season before joining the Marlins major league staff as First Base and Infield Coach for the 2007-09 campaigns. In 2010, he joined the Mariners as their Hitting Coach for their Double-A affiliate in West Tennessee. Fox joined the Red Sox in 2011 as the team’s infield Coordinator, a role he held until 2021. In his coordinator role, Fox oversaw the development of several future major league All-Stars including Rafael Devers, Xander Boegarts and Mookie Betts. Fox earned two additional World Series Championship rings as an instructor in 2013 and 2018 with Boston.

Prior to joining the Pirates in 2025, Fox spent three seasons on the Boston Red Sox major-league coaching staff after serving as the team’s Infield Coordinator from 2011-21 and as the team’s Assistant Field Coordinator. He joined the Red Sox major league staff under Alex Cora as the team’s Field Coordinator for the 2022 and 2023 seasons, then served as the team’s First Base Coach during the 2024 season.

Pitching Coach Kevin Walker joins the Altoona staff after spending his entire coaching career with the Boston Red Sox, rising from short-season Lowell in 2009 to the major league staff in 2020. Walker spent three seasons as the Pitching Coach for the Portland Sea Dogs (2015-17) before joining Triple-A Pawtucket for two seasons. In 2020, Walker was hired as the Red Sox Assistant Pitching Coach and spent the 2021-24 campaigns as the team’s Bullpen Coach where he shared the staff with Curve Manager Andy Fox. Walker pitched in 122 major league games as a reliever for the San Diego Padres, San Francisco Giants and Chicago White Sox across the 2000 – 2005 seasons. Walker’s Rookie season with San Diego in 2000 saw him record a 7-1 record in 70 appearances. Walker was a 6^th round draft selection by the Padres in 1995 out of Grand Prairie High School (Texas) and pitched professionally for 12 years, ending in 2008.

Pitching Coach David Perez joins the staff after spending last season as a lead pitching instructor for the Pirates DSL Black affiliate. Perez joined the Pirates in 2020 and has served at Triple-A Indianapolis (Bullpen Coach, 2023), Single-A Bradenton (Pitching Coach, 2022) and in the FCL (2021). Perez was signed as an international free agent by the Texas Rangers in 2009 and spent eight seasons in their minor league system, reaching Double-A Frisco in 2016. After one season with the LA Angels and a season pitching in the independent ranks, Perez began his coaching career as an instructor with Ottawa University Arizona in 2018 before joining the Pirates.

Hitting Coach Scott Seabol returns to Altoona for his second season. Seabol aided the development of 2025 Team MVP Nick Cimillo and helped the Curve reach the postseason for the first time in seven years. The Western, PA native accepted a "dream job" with the Pirates after spending the 2024 season as the Hitting Coach at Low-A Bradenton. The 2026 campaign is his third season in the Pirates minor league system, after four seasons as a hitting instructor with the Miami Marlins (2020-2023) and the New York Yankees (2016-19) at various levels in their minor league system. Seabol was drafted by the New York Yankees in 1996 out of West Virginia University and played 60 major league games with the Yankees (2001) and St. Louis Cardinals (2005). Seabol’s 14-year playing career wrapped up in 2009 after a season in Korea and two seasons in Japan. A native of McKeesport, PA, Seabol resides in Elizabeth, PA with his twin sons Cole and Cameron (21) and daughter Caylin (16).

Bench Coach Gary Green returns to Altoona for the 2026 season after holding the same role with the Curve in 2021, 2023, 2024, 2025 and in 2022 with Indianapolis. A Pittsburgh native, Green was the organization’s Minor League Infield Coordinator and Roving Infield Instructor from 2011 through 2020. Green earned extensive managerial experience in the Pirates and Detroit Tigers organizations, amassing a 588-713 record (.488) across 11 seasons. Green’s most recent managerial experience came in a four-year run in the South Atlantic League with West Virginia (2009-10) and Hickory (2007-2008). His managerial stops include one season in Lynchburg (2006), three seasons with Lakeland (2002-2004), two seasons with Oneonta (2000-2001), and one season in the Gulf Coast League with the GCL Tigers (1999).

A former major league infielder for parts of five seasons, Green’s professional career on the diamond began after the San Diego Padres selected him 27th overall in the 1984 Amateur Draft. Prior to starting his professional career, Green was the starting shortstop for Team USA in the 1984 Olympic Games. Green went on to spend five seasons in the Padres organization, making his major league debut in September of 1986, two years in the Texas Rangers system and concluded his playing career after four seasons in the Cincinnati Reds organization. Green batted .222 with nine doubles and 11 RBI in 106 major league games with the Padres, Rangers and Reds.

A Pittsburgh native, Green played four years of baseball at Oklahoma State. His father, Fred, pitched for the Pirates for parts of four seasons (1959-64) and was a member of the 1960 World Champion Pirates.

Athletic Trainer Coleman Duke joins the Curve for the 2025 campaign after spending last season as the Athletic Trainer at High-A Greensboro. Prior to that, Duke spent two seasons as the head Athletic Trainer in the Florida Complex League. Duke earned his Bachelor of Science degree in Exercise Science from Berry College (GA) in 2018 and a Master of Science in Athletic Training from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga in 2021. A native of Selma, AL, Duke has also served as an Athletic Training Intern in the Dominican Summer League in 2017, as an Assistant Athletic Trainer for Triple-A Indianapolis (2022) and with the Boston Red Sox High-A affiliate in Greenville (2021).

Strength and Conditioning Coach Ryoji Ejima returns to the Curve in 2026. Ejima, born in Iizuka, Fukuoka, Japan, is in his sixth season working in the Pirates minor league system, he served as the Assistant Strength & Conditioning coach for Triple-A Indianapolis in 2024 and has held Strength & Conditioning roles for Greensboro (2022) and Bradenton (2021) in his career. Ejima earned his bachelor’s degree in Health and Sports Science, Athletic Training from Chukyo University in 2016 and a master’s degree in Exercise Science, Strength and Conditioning from Appalachian State in 2021, he joined the organization after two years as a Graduate Teaching Assistant at Appalachian State University.

Clubhouse Manager Nick Mote returns for his second season on the Curve staff. A Pittsburgh native, Mote holds a Sport Management degree from Slippery Rock University.

Operations Assistant Richie Saville joins Altoona after spending last season with Triple-A Indianapolis. Saville was raised in St. Louis, MO and attended Creighton University where we worked as a member of the Analytics team for Creighton Baseball.

Dietitian Stephanie Xavier is in her second season with the Pirates after serving in various minor league Dietitian roles with the Toronto Blue Jays in 2024 and New York Mets in 2023. Xavier holds a Bachelor of Arts in Kinesiology from Cornell College and a Master of Science in Experiences and Nutrition Services from Montana Sate University-Bozeman.

Opening Day for the 2026 Altoona Curve Season, presented by Stuckey Automotive, at Peoples Natural Gas Field is Thursday, April 2. For more information, visit AltoonaCurve.com, call 877.99.CURVE or stop by the PNG Field box office. Additionally, the Stockyard Team Store is open Monday-Friday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., during every home game and online 24/7/365.