Goodrum inherits a farm system that, by all accounts, ranks among the sport’s worst. “I’m really going in with the mentality of learning how things operate and then understanding from the past five seasons in Milwaukee and some perspectives I bring, identifying some areas we can continue to grow in.” “This is a department that’s been established for quite some time, and Pete’s been a huge part of that,” Goodrum said. Pete Putila, the Astros’ assistant general manager formerly in charge of player development, is now her direct boss. She is expected to travel extensively during the regular season to all minor league affiliates.īrison Gresham leads Texas Southern over Arkansas-Pine Bluff Goodrum will oversee all areas of player development, including hiring staffs, forming coaching and playing philosophies, and meeting player development goals. Her new role with the Astros is vital, perhaps one of the most important in any organization seeking sustainability.
“Within about 10 or 14 days, (I) had to make some pretty big decisions in my life,” Goodrum said. Goodrum said she flew to Houston “basically a day later.”
A few months later, her Brewers bosses informed her of the Astros’ interview request. Goodrum finished her first season with a stint in the major league dugout during September. Goodrum oversaw the team’s hitting philosophy and program across all of its minor league affiliates. In 2021, the team promoted her from its sports science department to minor league hitting coordinator. “I think in general across the sports industry, there’s a lot of positive things happening, and that just, in general, excites me.”Īfter leaving Oregon and receiving her master’s degree in exercise and science from Utah, Goodrum spent five seasons in the Milwaukee Brewers organization. “It’s kind of crazy, because sometimes you get so caught up in the job and day to day, you need to pick your head up and see the bigger picture of what’s going on,” Goodrum said. Balkovec and Nakken provided two more firsts for baseball. Alyssa Nakken spent last season as a major league coach for the National League West champion San Francisco Giants. Last month, the New York Yankees named Rachel Balkovec - a former minor league strength coach in the Astros’ system - the new manager of the Class A Tampa Tarpons. She is the first woman to hold the title in any North American sport. The Miami Marlins hired Kim Ng as their general manager last winter.
Goodrum’s hire furthers the diversification of a sport once not known for it. “I’ve just found that when you get in a room with people who think different and provide different perspectives, regardless of gender or race or any of those matters, you can do some really special things.” “Something that I love so much about going through hiring processes and hiring people or hiring a staff is understanding and identifying my own strengths and weaknesses and trying to find people who will challenge myself and think differently,” Goodrum said Wednesday in her first public comments since arriving to the Astros.