Guardians Announce Greg DiCenzo to lead 2024 RubberDucks Field Staff 

(AKRON, OHIO) January 24, 2024 – The Cleveland Guardians announced their 2024 Player Development staff assignments tabbing Greg DiCenzo as the manager in Akron. Joining DiCenzo in 2024 will be Jordan Becker as hitting coach, Amanda Kamekona as assistant hitting coach, Cody Buckel as pitching coach, Michael Poole as assistant pitching coach, Kyle Lindquist as bench coach, Derrik Diaz as athletic trainer and the returning Mo Cuevas as strength & conditioning coach.

“We are excited to welcome Greg DiCenzo to Akron,” RubberDucks President and General Manager Jim Pfander said. “With Rouglas Odor and Brad Goldberg both making their way to the Cleveland coaching staff after spending time in Akron, we are looking forward to getting to know all the new faces on the staff and seeing a familiar face in Mo Cuevas. I can’t wait to see this staff and the players take the field at Canal Park on April 5.”

Manager Greg DiCenzo enters his fourth season with the Guardians organization. The 2024 season will be DiCenzo’s first as RubberDucks manager, and third as a manager in the Guardians organization. He becomes the 19th manager in Akron franchise history (since 1989).

Prior to becoming Triple-A Columbus’ bench coach in 2023, DiCenzo spent the 2021 and 2022 seasons as the manager in High-A Lake County. He guided the Captains to a 141-108 record in his two seasons including a Midwest League finals appearance in 2022.

A native of Duxbury, MA, DiCenzo was the head baseball coach at Holy Cross for 12 seasons prior to joining the Cleveland organization. The Crusaders went 137-109 in Patriot League play during his tenure, including a 2017 Patriot League Championship, and posted 20-win seasons in 10 of those 12 years.

Hitting Coach Jordan Becker enters his fifth season with the Guardians and first with the RubberDucks. In 2023, Becker served as the hitting coach for Lake County.

Becker joined the Cleveland organization in 2019 after a collegiate coaching career that saw stops at Riverside Community College and New Mexico State University.

Assistant Hitting Coach Amanda Kamekona enters her second year with the Guardians organization and first season with Akron. Kamekona spent 2023 as the hitting development coach on the Arizona Complex Academy staff.

Kamekona is the first female on-the-field coach in RubberDucks history. She played professional softball on the PFX Tour from 2010-2011 and the NPF tour from 2011-2019 where she was a three-time National Champion. Kamekona started her coaching career as an assistant softball coach at Limestone College before becoming the head softball coach at Brevard College. She also has head coaching stops at Bishop Amat High School and CA Bombers Fastpitch.

Pitching Coach Cody Buckel enters his sixth season in the Guardians organization and first season with the RubberDucks. Prior to coming to Akron, Buckel was the pitching strategist for the Columbus Clippers for the 2022 and 2023 seasons.

After starting his coaching career as a pitching coach in the Seattle Mariners organization, Buckel has spent time in the both the dugout and front office for Cleveland serving as the pitching resource coordinator and assistant director of pitching development before joining the Clippers field staff.

Assistant Pitching Coach Michael Poole enters his second season in the Guardians organization and first season with the RubberDucks. Prior to joining the RubberDucks, Poole was the pitching development coach on the Arizona Complex Academy staff.

A native of Akron, Poole played at Cuyahoga Community College and Lake Erie College before starting his coaching career at Inspiration Academy (FL) in 2019. Poole was an assistant coach at LSU-Eunice for the Bengals D2 JUCO World Series Championship season in 2021.

Bench Coach Kyle Lindquist enters his fifth season in the Guardians organization and first season in Akron. Prior to coming to Akron, Lindquist spent 2023 as the bench coach for Lake County.

A native of Columbus, Lindquist played at Marietta College (Ohio) and was a three-time All-OAC selection, 2012 All-American and member of the back-to-back National Championship teams in 2011 and 2012. After starting his coaching career at Marietta, Lindquist spent five seasons as an assistant coach at Denison University and one season at Davidson before joining the Cleveland organization.

Athletic Trainer Derrik Diaz enters his fifth season in the Guardians organization and first season with the RubberDucks. Prior to coming to Akron, Diaz served as the head athletic trainer for the Dominican Republic Complex in 2023.

Strength and Conditioning Coach Mo Cuevas enters his ninth season with the Guardians organization and second season in Akron. Prior to joining the RubberDucks, Cuevas served as the rehab strength and conditioning coach in 2022.

The Akron RubberDucks are the Double-A affiliate of the Cleveland Guardians. The RubberDucks season at Canal Park begins on Friday, April 5 against the Altoona Curve at 7:05 p.m. Fans can purchase tickets by calling 330-253-5151 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays, or visit akronrubberducks.com/. For more information about the team, please call 330-253-5151, visit the website at akronrubberducks.com, Facebook page facebook.com/AkronRubberDucks, or on Twitter @AkronRubberDuck, and Instagram @akronrubberducks.