Nationals Announce 2026 Fredericksburg Coaching Staff

FREDERICKSBURG, Va. - Ahead of the sixth season of Fredericksburg Nationals baseball, today the Washington Nationals announced the 2026 FredNat coaching staff, with Chris O'Neill taking over as the fourth Manager in franchise history. O'Neill will lead a staff comprised of two returners from 2025 and seven newcomers to the Washington organization.

The full 2026 coaching staff is as follows:

Manager: Chris O'Neill

Hitting Coach: Jake Scheiner

Pitching Coach: Luke Dziados

Assistant Pitching Coach: Luis Villanueva

Defensive Coach: Anthony Ray

Coach: Isaac Kim

Strength & Conditioning Coach: Mike Reiskind

Associate S&C Coach: Zac Watkins

Athletic Trainer: Jacob Meyer

Manager Chris O’Neill, 36, joins the Nationals organization after two seasons (2024-25) as a hitting coach/recruiting coordinator at Virginia Commonwealth University. Prior to that, he served as an assistant coach and assistant recruiting coordinator at George Washington from 2022-24. O'Neill is credited with helping fuel major offensive surges at both VCU and George Washington, as both schools set offensive records and contended for Atlantic 10 championships under his watch. O’Neill spent the 2021 season as the director of operations at Duke University and prior to that, he served as an assistant coach at Bucknell University (2020), Marshall University (2018-19) and the University of Maryland-Eastern Shore (2017).

This season will be O'Neill's first time managing since he led the Grand Lake Mariners (Great Lakes Summer Collegiate League) in the summers of 2016 and 2017. In his first season, he helped guide the Mariners to the most wins since 2009 while qualifying for the postseason. He followed up his successful managerial debut with a runner-up finish in 2017. A Pennsylvania native, he received his Bachelor’s degree in Education from King’s College in 2012. O'Neill and his wife Kate have two boys, Easton and Callum.

Hitting Coach Jake Scheiner, 30, starts his coaching career after playing seven seasons (2017-23) in the Phillies and Mariners organizations. He appeared in 658 Minor League games before signing in 2024 with Hiroshima Toyo Carp of Nippon Professional Baseball in Japan. A native of San Mateo, Calif., Scheiner was drafted in the fourth round of the 2017 First-Year Player Draft by the Phillies out of the University of Houston.

Pitching Coach Luke Dziados (D-Zay-Dis), 27, comes to the Nationals organization after spending the last two years as a pitching trainer at Driveline Baseball in Tampa, Fla. He capped his college pitching career at Villanova University in 2023 after pitching at Binghamton University from 2018-20. Dziados earned his Bachelor's degree from Binghamton in 2021 and also earned a Graduate Certificate in Leadership from Villanova in 2023.

Assistant Pitching Coach Luis Villanueva, 24, was a performance coach at LAVR Performance where he designed and led throwing programs to improve overall pitching performance for more than 50 athletes prior to joining Washington's coaching ranks. Villanueva attended and played baseball for both Kansas Wesleyan University and MidAmerica Nazarene University.

Defensive Coach Anthony Ray, 30, joins Washington after spending the 2025 season as a hitting and outfield coach with the Rocky Mountain Vibes of the independent Pioneer League. He transitioned to the coaching role after 487 professional games across 10 seasons between the St. Louis Cardinals system and independent leagues.

Coach Isaac Kim, 23, comes to the Nationals organization from California State University, Northridge, where he capped his collegiate playing career in 2025. He began his collegiate playing career at Pomona University (Calif.) where he graduated in 2024. Kim has previous coaching experience with PFA Sports in Los Angeles, Calif., where he managed the club baseball team and oversaw all aspects of player development.

Strength & Conditioning Coach Mike Reiskind (RICE-kin-d), 26, returns to the FredNat coaching staff for a second season with Washington in the same role. He spent the 2024 season in the league with the Carolina Mudcats (Milwaukee) as an Associate S&C Coach. Prior to joining the Brewers, he was the Head Strength and Conditioning Coach at Eastern Mennonite University in Harrisonburg, VA, and has also coached at Appalachian State University.

Associate S&C Coach Zac Watkins, 25, joins the Nationals after spending last baseball season with the Milwaukee Brewers as an Associate Minor League S&C Specialist. Prior to that, he was a Sports Performance and Analytics intern at the University of Florida, where he received his Master of Science in 2024.

Athletic Trainer Jacob Meyer, 34, the longest tenured member of the staff, begins his ninth season as an Athletic Trainer with Washington and fourth in Fredericksburg (2023-present), including the 2024 Carolina League championship team. He spent his first five years with the organization at the facility in West Palm Beach, Fla.

The FredNats begin the 2026 season on Friday, April 3 at home against Augusta at 6:35 p.m. The promotional schedule will be released at a later date.

The Fredericksburg Nationals are the Carolina League affiliate of the Washington Nationals. They play their home games at the state-of-the-art Virginia Credit Union Stadium, located at 42 Jackie Robinson Way next to the Fredericksburg Convention Center in Fredericksburg, Virginia. Stay up to date with the team online at www.frednats.com and follow the Fredericksburg Nationals on Facebook, X and Instagram @FXBGNats.