Kennedy Centers Lugnuts' 2025 Coaching Staff
February 5, 2025 - Midwest League (MWL)
Lansing Lugnuts News Release
LANSING, Mich. - Darryl Kennedy will be the 19th manager in Lansing Lugnuts franchise history, heading up the Athletics' High-A coaching staff in the Nuts' 29th season in Michigan's state capital.
Kennedy's staff comprises former Major Leaguer Dave Burba as pitching coach, the returning Rubén Escalera and newcomer Cooper Goldby as assistant hitting coaches, and the returning Noah Huff and Jonny Christensen as head athletic trainer and sport performance coach respectively.
Tickets are available now at the Jackson® Field™ box office for the 2025 Crosstown Showdown against Michigan State University on Tuesday, April 1, 2025. The club's Midwest League home opener is on Tuesday, April 8, beginning a six-game series against the Great Lakes Loons.
Darryl Kennedy, who spent the 2024 season as the Double-A Midland RockHounds' Assistant Hitting Coach, brings 22 years of Minor League managerial experience to Lansing. The native Floridian distinguished himself as a catcher at Manatee Community College before starring at the University of North Florida, earning a nod as an NCAA All-American in 1991 as well as a spot in North Florida's Hall of Fame, inducted in 2017. Kennedy played in the Minor Leagues for seven seasons, including parts of four seasons in Triple-A. Following his 1997 retirement, he immediately began managing, leading the Gulf Coast League Rangers to the 1998 GCL Championship.
Kennedy won a second title with the Rangers in 2000, moving on to stops in the Florida State League, Northwest League and Texas League in the Rangers' organization through 2006, and the Appalachian League, Carolina League, Pioneer League, Arizona League and Texas League in the Kansas City Royals' organization through 2020. He then served as bench coach for the Korea Baseball Organization's Hanwha Eagles from 2021 through 2023. In all, Kennedy has a record of 976-939 in 1,915 games, putting him on position to win his 1,000th career MiLB game in Lansing.
Dave Burba, the 2024 Arizona Complex A's pitching coach, won 115 games in 15 MLB seasons before spending 13 seasons as a pitching coach in the Colorado Rockies' organization. The native Ohioan walked on at Ohio State University and pitched in the Big Ten Championship game as a freshman, earning his way to a second-round selection of the Seattle Mariners in 1987, where he worked his way up to the Majors alongside the M's first-round selection, Ken Griffey, Jr. Traded to the Giants, he posted the first of eight double-digit victory seasons in 1993. By the end of the decade, he had established himself as a stalwart in Cincinnati's and Cleveland's starting rotations. In nine postseason appearances between the two franchises, he posted a 3-0 record with a 2.14 ERA in 21 innings.
Rubén Escalera, baseball royalty in Puerto Rico, enters his 30th season in the A's organization and his second season as the Lugnuts' assistant hitting coach. His responsibilities also include first base coach, base running and outfield defense. Originally an international free agent signed by the Milwaukee Brewers, Escalera played ten years in the Minor Leagues before joining the A's organization as scout in Puerto Rico, coach in the Dominican Summer League, and hitting coach and manager in the Arizona League, where he was named the 2005 Arizona League Manager of the Year.
The pride of Yuba City, Calif., Cooper Goldby comes to the Lugnuts after two seasons serving as the Dominican Summer League A's manager. The catcher/utilityman was drafted out of Lewis-Clark State in the 35th round in 2017 and played three seasons in the A's organization before transitioning to coaching as the Stockton Ports' hitting coach in 2022.
Head athletic trainer Noah Huff enters his sixth season in the Athletics' system, his second year with the Lugnuts. Huff graduated from the University of Mary (Bismarck, N.D.), working his way up to Lansing following stops in the Dominican complex, Arizona Complex League and Stockton.
Sport performance coach Jonny Christensen, the finest quarterback among all strength and conditioning coaches in the Midwest League, also rejoins the Lugnuts for a second season. Christensen, a graduate of Cameron University (Lawton, Okla.), came to the Athletics in 2024 following internships with the Boston Red Sox and the Milwaukee Brewers.
For further information on the Lansing Lugnuts approaching the 2025 season, please visit milb.com/lansing or call (517) 485-4500.
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