Drillers Announce 2022 Coaching Staff

As Tulsa Drillers manager Scott Hennessey prepares for the 2022 season, it was announced today that a mixture of new and returning faces will be alongside him in the dugout season. Today, the Drillers and the Los Angeles Dodgers announced the coaching staff that will join Hennessey for the upcoming 2022 campaign.

The staff includes hitting coach Brett Pill and bench coach Chris Gutierrez, returning for their second seasons in Tulsa. New to the Drillers is pitching coach Ryan Dennick, bullpen coach Luis Vasquez, performance coach Brandon Golden, trainer Jesse Guffey and video associate Devon Wright.

Dennick is new to the coaching staff, but he may be a familiar name to Drillers fans from his 2015 stint on Tulsa’s pitching staff, where he posted a 4-1 record with a 2.94 ERA out of the bullpen. Dennick pitched seven seasons in professional baseball and had a brief stint in the majors with the Cincinnati Reds. This season will mark his fifth year with the Dodgers. Last year, he served as the pitching coach for the Great Lake Loons.

Pill returns for his sophomore season as the Drillers hitting coach. As a player, the California native played in 111 games across three seasons in the majors for the San Francisco Giants, followed by three seasons in the Korea Baseball Organization. Under Pill’s leadership, the Drillers finished the 2021 season ranked fourth in home runs at the Double-A level.

Gutierrez returns for his second season in Tulsa as the bench coach. The former infielder played collegiately at Oklahoma State from 2002-2005, followed by nine years of minor league baseball with the Toronto Blue Jays, Los Angeles Angels, Los Angeles Dodgers and Miami Marlins. 2022 marks Gutierrez's fifth year with the Dodgers.

Vasquez joins as the Drillers bullpen coach, in his first season coaching in the Dodgers organization. Vasquez pitched for the Drillers in 2019 and played a significant role for the club as he struck out the final batter in the division clinching victory that sent Tulsa to its third straight appearance in the Texas League Championship Series. Vasquez spent a total of 10 seasons in the minors with three organizations during his playing career.

Golden will be joining the staff to begin his second season as a performance coach in the Dodgers organization. Golden spent 2021 working at the Dodgers Camelback Ranch in Glendale, Arizona.

Guffey will serve as the team trainer for the upcoming season in what will be his fifth year in the Dodgers organization. He spent 2021 with the Rancho Cucamonga Quakes, and he has prior experience working in the Cincinnati Reds organization.

Wright is the final member of the Drillers staff, serving as the team’s video associate in his first year in the Dodgers organization.

The Drillers will open the 2022 regular season on Friday, April 8 on the road at Wichita. Following a three-game series with the Wind Surge, opening day at ONEOK Field will take place on Tuesday, April 12 against Amarillo.

Season ticket memberships as well as individual game tickets are currently on sale at TulsaDrillers.com or by calling 918-744-5901.