| Craig Albernaz | |
|---|---|
| Cleveland Guardians – No. 55 | |
| Coach | |
| Born: (1982-10-30)October 30, 1982 (age 42) Fall River, Massachusetts, U.S. | |
Bats: Right Throws: Right | |
| Teams | |
As coach
|
Craig Francis Albernaz (born October 30, 1982) is an American professionalbaseballcoach for theCleveland Guardians ofMajor League Baseball (MLB). He currently serves as their associate manager. He played college baseball forEckerd College. Albernaz signed with theTampa Bay Rays as afree agent in 2006. He was formerly the bullpen and catching coach for theSan Francisco Giants.
Albernaz attendedSomerset Berkley Regional High School inSomerset, Massachusetts.[1]
He attendedEckerd College ('05), where he playedcollege baseball as apitcher andcatcher.[2][3] As a catcher, he threw out 61% of attempted base stealers, and his arm was regularly clocked at 1.85 seconds to second base.[4]
Albernaz was undrafted out of college and signed with theTampa Bay Rays as a free agent in 2006.[5] He played as a catcher in the Rays organization from 2006 through 2013. He spent his final season in 2014 in theDetroit Tigers organization.[6] In his minor league career, five seasons of which he played in Triple–A, he threw out 44% of attempted base stealers (145 of 184).[7]
Albernaz began his coaching career in 2015. He served as a coach for the rookie–levelPrinceton Rays in theAppalachian League in 2015 and for the Low–AHudson Valley Renegades in theNew York-Penn League in 2016.[8] He started the 2017 season as the third base and catching coach of the Triple–ADurham Bulls in theInternational League, before serving as the manager of Hudson Valley.[9] He served as the High–ABowling Green Hot Rods' manager in theMidwest League in 2018.[9] He was named the 2018Midwest League Manager of the Year.[1] Albernaz spent the 2019 season as one of the Rays minor league field coordinators.[8]
On December 11, 2019, Albernaz was hired by theSan Francisco Giants as theirbullpen and catching coach.[8]
On November 10, 2023, theCleveland Guardians hired Albernaz to be their bench coach.[10][11] On November 13, 2024, Albernaz was promoted to the role of associate manager.[12]