River Bandits Announce 2026 Coaching Staff

Davenport, Iowa — The Quad Cities River Bandits, in conjunction with the Kansas City Royals, today announced their 2026 coaching staff, led by manager Jesus Azuaje who returns to Modern Woodmen Park for his second season at the helm. The skipper is joined by pitching coach Derrick Lewis, hitting coach Manny Burriss, assistant pitching coach Clayton Mortensen, assistant coach Luke Lowery, strength and conditioning coach Chad Gravenorst, and athletic trainer Nevan Dominguez. Conner Jones returns for his second season as Quad Cities’ clubhouse coordinator.

Azuaje, the 41st manager in franchise history, enters his 12th season—fourth managerial—in the Royals organization after leading the River Bandits to a division-best 74-58 record in 2025. Before coming to Quad Cities, Azuaje managed the Columbia Fireflies (Single-A) to a 68-63 record in 2024 and the ACL Royals (Rookie) to a 31-25 record in 2023. He spent the previous eight seasons serving as hitting coach for the Burlington Royals (2015-2016), Lexington Legends (2017-2020), and Columbia (2021-2022). Prior to joining the Royals, Azuaje spent six seasons as a manager and coach in the Seattle Mariners organization, including a stint in the Midwest League as hitting coach for the Clinton LumberKings (Single-A) in 2009 and as Latin America Field Coordinator for the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2014.

Lewis returns to Quad Cities for his fourth season as pitching coach and his seventh with the Royals organization after serving in the same role for the Northwest Arkansas Naturals (Double-A) in 2021 and 2022. Under his tutelage, the River Bandits posted the league’s second-best earned run average (3.29) and completed a league-most 15 shutouts in 2025. Before beginning his tenure with Kansas City, the Montgomery, Alabama native spent 16 seasons in the Atlanta Braves organization, including the last two as pitching coordinator. Lewis played seven seasons in the Braves minor league system from 1997-2003 after being selected in the 20th round of the 1997 Draft.

Burriss enters his first season with Quad Cities and his first as a coach in the Royals organization. His Kansas City tenure follows six seasons in the Dodgers organization, where he served as a hitting instructor in 2019 and as hitting coach for the Oklahoma City Comets (Triple-A) from 2021-2025. Selected with the 33rd overall pick by the San Francisco Giants in 2006, Burriss played professionally for 13 years including parts of seven seasons with the Giants, Washington Nationals, and Philadelphia Phillies.

Mortensen enters his second year with the River Bandits amidst his second stint as a coach in the Royals organization after serving as pitching coach for Idaho Falls (Rookie) in 2019. The former first-round pick spent the previous four seasons as pitching coach in the Chicago Cubs organization, leading the Arizona Cubs’ (Rookie) staff in 2024, South Bend Cubs’ (High-A) in 2023, and Myrtle Beach Pelicans’ (Single-A) from 2021-2022. Prior to his coaching career, Mortensen pitched five seasons in the Majors with the St. Louis Cardinals (2009), Oakland Athletics (2009-2010), Colorado Rockies (2010), and Boston Red Sox (2012-2013). After being drafted by the Cardinals in 2007, the Rexburg, Idaho native made 10 appearances for the Swing of the Quad Cities during his first professional season. The right-hander also pitched four seasons for the Omaha Storm Chasers (Triple-A) as a Royals farm hand from 2013-2016.

Lowery heads to Quad Cities during his first season in the Royals organization after spending the previous two years as assistant baseball coach at the University of Lynchburg (Virginia). In 2023 he served as director of player development at Pro Development Group Academy in Fredericksburg, Virginia and was the head coach and assistant catching coordinator at IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida from 2019-2022. Prior to coaching, Lowery played three seasons at East Carolina University, earning All-American Conference First Team Honors in 2015, before being drafted in the 14th round later that year by the Arizona Diamondbacks. During his five-year professional career, Lowery played 20 games in the Midwest League with the Kane County Cougars in 2016.

Gravenorst returns to the River Bandits for a third season after making his Royals organization debut with Quad Cities in 2024. Prior to his time in Davenport, Gravenorst worked as a biokineticist for Virgin Active South Africa and spent six years as a consultant for Major League Baseball. He was slated to be a coach for Team South Africa in the 2020 World Baseball Classic qualifiers before the COVID-19 pandemic eliminated the tournament. Gravenorst earned a bachelor’s degree in biokinetics from University of the Western Cape (South Africa) in 2008 and a master’s in biokinetics from the University of Cape Town in 2016.

Dominguez enters his third year as Quad Cities’ athletic trainer after serving in that role for Columbia (2022-2023), the Surprise Royals (2020-2021), and the Royals Dominican Academy (2018-2019). He was the Major League athletic training intern for the Royals in 2017 and previously worked professional extreme sports events with the Red Bull Rampage and Red Bull Crashed Ice. Dominguez is a 2016 graduate of the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque. He is a Certified Athletic Trainer through the BOC and a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist through the NSCA.