Did you know that on April 12, 2022, at 2:53 p.m., Alyssa Nakken made Major League Baseball history as the first female coach on the field in a regular-season game when she took her spot for the San Francisco Giants against San Diego?
California State University, Sacramento, had a part in it! Alyssa Nakken played softball for the Sacramento State Hornets as a first baseman. She was a three-time all-conference selection and the 2012 conference Scholar-Athlete of the Year. With her .304 batting average, she was named to the All-Pacific Coast Softball Conference all four years, from 2009 through 2012. Nakken graduated with a bachelor’s degree in psychology.
In 2014 she joined the SF Giants’ baseball operations department, where she worked on health and wellness programs. In 2015 she earned her MA degree in sports management from the University of San Francisco. In January 2020, she was promoted to the full-time major league coaching staff, making her the first female coach in MLB’s 146-year history. On July 20, 2020, Nakken took the field against the Oakland Athletics in an exhibition game in which the Giants won 6–2!
On April 12, 2022, the San Francisco Giants vs. San Diego Padres. First base coach, Antoan Richardson, was ejected in the top of the third inning. The story goes that Padres’ coach slanted racial slurs, and Richardson got upset because the first base umpire ignored it.
Ricardson got upset and was ejected. How did the Giants counter?
Alyssa Nakken became the first woman to coach on the field in a regular-season major league game on April 12, 2022.
History is made with hard work, dedication, and courage to stand against tyranny. The San Francisco Giants believed in Nakken. Sacramento State believed in Nakken. Alyssa Nakken believed in herself. Right here, right now, let Sacramento State help you to believe in yourself and be a part of your history.
Follow the links below to learn more about Alyssa Nakken, watch interviews, or even buy tickets ahead of the next season to see history in action.
https://www.usfca.edu/magazine/may-2021/feature/30-under-30/alyssa-nakken
One of the best stories to come from Sac State! Great writing on this and giving us a small in site on a very important alumni. The links included are great and give a lot more detail and I think everyone needs to see Alyssa in action wearing orange and black.