Atlanta Braves Announce Eight to Gwinnett Coaching Staff for 2022

LAWRENCEVILLE, Ga. – The Atlanta Braves announced today the Gwinnett Stripers’ coaching staff for the 2022 season. Matt Tuiasosopo returns for his second season as Gwinnett manager, while pitching coach Mike Maroth, hitting coach Carlos Mendez, coach Wigberto Nevarez, and strength coach Paul Howey also return to the staff. New to the Stripers this season are coach Devon Travis, and athletic trainers Drew Garner and Dan Gaertner.

Tuiasosopo, 35, enters his third season as a minor league manager and fourth year coaching in the Braves organization. Named the seventh manager in Gwinnett history on March 30, 2021, he became both the youngest skipper in Gwinnett history and the first former Gwinnett player to manage the club as he led the Stripers to a 71-58 record last season. He owns a career managerial record of 136-132 (.507) over two seasons, including his 2019 debut with Class-A Rome when he earned Atlanta’s Bobby Cox Award for minor league manager of the year. His coaching career includes a stint at the Braves Alternate Training Site in 2020.

Prior to managing, Tuiasosopo played 14 seasons in the organizations of the Seattle Mariners (2004-11), New York Mets (2012), Detroit Tigers (2013), Toronto Blue Jays (2014), Chicago White Sox (2014-15) and Braves (2016-17). The Bellevue, Wash. native saw Major League time in parts of five seasons, logging 155 games with Seattle (2008-10), Detroit (2013), and Atlanta (2016).

Maroth, 44, enters his third season as Gwinnett’s pitching coach and seventh year in the Braves organization. In 2021, his Stripers pitching staff ranked among the top five teams in the Triple-A East in complete games (T-1st, 3), ERA (3rd, 3.72), WHIP (3rd, 1.25), opponent batting average (4th, .230), and shutouts (T-4th, 9).

Prior to joining Gwinnett in 2019, Maroth served as the Braves’ minor league pitching rehabilitation coordinator (2016-17) and Advanced-A Florida pitching coach (2018). The Orlando, Fla. native also spent four seasons as a pitching coach in the Detroit Tigers organization, including stints with Advanced-A Lakeland (2012-14) and Triple-A Toledo (2015). His tenure as a coach follows a 13-year playing career that included 161 games in the Majors with the Tigers (2002-07) and St. Louis Cardinals (2007).

Mendez, 47, enters his second season as Gwinnett’s hitting coach and 15th year in the Braves organization. In 2021, he helped guide a Stripers offense that tallied 164 home runs, sixth-most in the Triple-A East and second-most ever by an Atlanta Triple-A club.

The Caracas, Venezuela native has spent his entire coaching career in Atlanta’s system, serving as a hitting coach with eight different clubs including Rookie-level Danville (2008-10, 2014), Class-A Rome (2011-12), the Gulf Coast League Braves (2013), Advanced-A Lynchburg (2014), Advanced-A Carolina (2015-16), Advanced-A Florida (2017), Double-A Mississippi (2018-19), and Gwinnett (2021-current). Prior to coaching, Mendez played 16 minor league seasons (1991-2007) with the Kansas City Royals, Detroit Tigers, Oakland Athletics, Baltimore Orioles, and Braves organizations. He reached the Majors in 2003, playing 26 games for the Orioles.

Nevarez, 30, enters his second season as a coach with Gwinnett and fifth year coaching in the Braves organization. Atlanta’s 20th-round pick out of Lubbock (Texas) Christian University in 2014, Nevarez played a four-year career as a catcher in the Braves’ minors, reaching as high as Advanced-A Florida in 2017. The San Juan, Puerto Rico native went on to coaching positions with the Gulf Coast League Braves (2018) and Class-A Rome (2019) before joining Gwinnett in 2021.

Travis, 30, enters his first season as a coach with Gwinnett and second year in the Braves organization. He made his coaching debut with Double-A Mississippi in 2021, helping lead the club to the Double-A South championship. Detroit’s 13th-round pick in 2012 out of Florida State University, Travis played a seven-year career as a second baseman in the Tigers and Toronto Blue Jays organizations through 2018. The West Palm Beach, Fla. native logged 316 career Major League games with Toronto from 2015-18.

For the first time in history, Gwinnett will have two athletic trainers with Garner and Gaertner both joining the staff.

Garner rejoins the Braves organization for his second stint and third year overall. With Atlanta from 2017-18, he was the athletic trainer for the Gulf Coast League Braves (2017) and Rookie-level Danville (2018). He then joined the San Diego Padres organization from 2019-21, serving as the athletic trainer for Double-A Amarillo (2019), the Padres Alternate Training Site (2020), and Triple-A El Paso (2021). Garner started his baseball career in 2016 as a rehab athletic trainer for the Chicago Cubs.

Gaertner enters his first season with the Braves organization. He previously served as the athletic trainer for the baseball program at the University of Memphis, and held a similar role for the University of Louisville, working with the baseball and men’s golf programs. Gaertner got his start in professional baseball in 2014 as an intern with the St. Paul Saints and joined the Toronto Blue Jays as a spring training intern in 2015.

Howey enters his third season as Gwinnett’s strength coach and his fifth year in the Braves organization. He began his baseball career with the Seattle Mariners organization, serving as the strength coach for Class-A Clinton for three seasons from 2015-17. Upon joining Atlanta in 2018, he was assigned to Double-A Mississippi, where he went on to be named the Southern League Strength Coach of the Year.

The Gwinnett Stripers’ 2022 season is not affected by the current lockout of Major League Baseball and will go on as scheduled. Gwinnett begins the year on Tuesday, April 5 at Memphis before returning to Coolray Field for Opening Night on Tuesday, April 12 vs. Nashville.

Single-game tickets for all Stripers 2022 home games will go on sale to the public on Sunday, March 13 at 10 a.m. Memberships, Luxury Suites, Group Outings, and more are on sale now at GoStripers.com.