Sharks Add Two Assistant Coaches To Baseball Staff
Nelson Santovenia, a catcher who spent six years in the Major Leagues, and Andrew Cabezas, who pitched in the Minnesota Twins minor league system, have joined the Miami Dade College coaching staff.
Santovenia, 62, will serve as the team’s hitting coach and assist with player development. Cabezas, 26, will work with starters and relief pitchers.
Both join the staff of first-year coach Lazaro Llanes, who was a scout with the Milwaukee Brewers for the past six years.
Nelson Santovenia
Santovenia, who played at MDC for two seasons and at the University of Miami in 1982, was drafted in the first round of the 1982 MLB amateur draft by the Montreal Expos (now the Washington Nationals).
He played professional baseball from 1987-1993 with the Montreal Expos, Chicago White Sox, and the Kansas City Royals tallying 22 home runs, collecting 116 RBI and boasting a .223 batting average in 884 plate appearances.
After his playing days ended he held coaching stints at Broward College, Archbishop McCarthy High School, South Dade Senior High School, Mater Lakes Academy, Cutler Bay Senior High School, Mater Academy High School and Archbishop Coleman F. Carroll High School.
He also assisted in player development in the minor league system of the Detroit Tigers from 2012-2017.
“I was very excited when I got the call to see if I was interested in coaching [at MDC],” Santovenia said. “You know, they say life goes in a circle, and it really does because this is where I started my college career.”
Andrew Cabezas
Cabezas, who played at Mater Academy and Coral Gables Senior High School, pitched three seasons at UM posting a 14-8 record with 213 strikeouts and a 3.69 earned run average.
The right-hander was drafted by the Minnesota Twins in the 18th round of the 2018 MLB amateur draft. He pitched five seasons in the Twins minor league system, striking out 291 batters in 300 innings and posting a 3.45 ERA and a 14-15 record.
This season, he pitched for the Wichita Wind Surge, a Double-A affiliate in the Texas League, posting a 4.43 ERA and a 1-2 record in 14 appearances as a reliever before he was released.
“Even though I know I have the ability to keep playing, coaching is my calling right now and I’m going to stick with it,” Cabezas said. “This opportunity is all I could ask for as a coach, to be able to add on to a well-known program with good traditions, and to help some Sharks go on to the next level.”
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