DURHAM, N.C. -- USA Baseball announced changes to its World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) Premier12™ coaching staff on Wednesday. Joe Girardi, who was named the manager of Team USA in August, has stepped down from his role with Team USA as he pursues open managerial opportunities in Major League Baseball. Three-time World Series champion, two-time USA Baseball Rod Dedeaux Coach of the Year and current USA Baseball Senior Director of Player Development Scott Brosius will now serve as the team's manager.
"We are grateful that Joe was a part of Team USA and we appreciate the time and preparation he dedicated to our endeavor of qualifying for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games," said Paul Seiler, USA Baseball's Executive Director and CEO. "On behalf of the organization, we wish him the best of luck as he seeks a manager position in Major League Baseball.
"Scott Brosius is respected across the baseball industry for his time as both a player and a coach. He possesses a tremendous resume and we are proud to have him step in and lead us in the Premier12 tournament. From top to bottom, the coaching staff we assembled boasts a wealth of international playing and coaching experience, and we are confident in their ability to help us achieve the goals we have collectively set for this team."
With Brosius taking the reins as manager, Willie Randolph will now serve as the bench coach for the team and Ernie Young will move from coaching first base to third base.
"It is a tremendous honor to be named the manager for the USA Baseball Premier12 team and I am pleased that my first act in this role is to welcome Anthony Sanders to our coaching staff," said Brosius. "Anthony comes highly recommended by his peers and we are thrilled to have him join the team. He will provide a unique perspective to this team having won a gold medal as a player with Team USA at the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games, as well as having coached at the international level in this very event four years ago."
Sydney 2000 Olympic Games gold medalist Anthony Sanders (pictured) will join the staff and take over the coaching duties at first base. Sanders, who served as an assistant coach for Team USA during the 2015 WBSC Premier12™, is currently the outfield and baserunning coordinator for the Colorado Rockies' minor league staff. He spent parts of three seasons in the majors as an outfielder with the Toronto Blue Jays and the Seattle Mariners before making his coaching debut as a hitting coach with the Tri-City Dust Devils in the Rockies' farm system in 2007. After four seasons as a hitting coach, Sanders was named the manager of the Grand Junction Rockies in 2013, where he spent three seasons and was named the 2014 Pioneer League Manager of the Year.
USA Baseball announced its 28-man roster last week that will begin the WBSC Premier12™ in Guadalajara, Mexico, from November 2-4 as a member of Group A with the Dominican Republic, Mexico and the Netherlands. The top two nations from Group A will advance to the Super Round in Tokyo from November 11-16.
The tournament is the first opportunity for Team USA to qualify for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games. The top finisher from both the Americas territory and Asia/Oceania territory (excluding Japan) will join host-country Japan and WBSC Baseball Europe/Africa Olympic Qualifier champion Israel in the six-team Olympic tournament. The final two Olympic berths will be decided in March 2020.
The team will train in Surprise, Arizona, from October 21-28 at the Kansas City Royals Spring Training facility before traveling to Mexico for the opening round of the Premier12™.
For more information on USA Baseball and the WBSC Premier12™, follow @USABaseball on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.