MIAMI – The Miami Marlins today announced additions to their Baseball Operations department under President of Baseball Operations Peter Bendix, including:

• Gabe Kapler – Assistant General Manager
• Rachel Balkovec – Director, Player Development
• Vinesh Kanthan – Director, Baseball Operations
• Frankie Piliere – Director, Amateur Scouting

"It is with great excitement that we welcome Gabe, Rachel, Vinesh and Frankie to the Marlins,” said Marlins President of Baseball Operations Peter Bendix.” “Their innovative approaches and forward-thinking mindsets will pave the way in guiding our club towards greater success. Their exceptional skills are matched by their outstanding character, making them not just great professionals but invaluable additions to our Marlins family.”

Kapler joins the Marlins organization as an Assistant General Manager after spending the last six seasons as a Major League manager; with Philadelphia from 2018-19, and with San Francisco from 2020-23. The 12-year MLB veteran, who hit .268 with 176 doubles, 82 home runs, and 386 RBI over 1,104 games played, also served as the Dodgers’ Director of Player Development from 2015-17. During his time overseeing the system, Los Angeles farm produced future Major League players, such as Cody Bellinger, Walker Buehler, Gavin Lux, and Max Muncy, among many others.

Balkovec was appointed the Marlins’ Director of Player Development coming off the last two seasons as manager of the Single-A Tampa Tarpons in the New York Yankees organization. Prior to serving as the first full-time female manager in affiliated baseball history, Balkovec spent the 2021 season as a hitting coach for the Florida Complex League Yankees and was a member of the American League coaching staff at the SiriusXM Futures Game that summer. She also served three seasons in strength and conditioning in the Houston Astros organization from 2016-19. Additionally, she served as an apprentice hitting coach with the Netherlands National Baseball and Softball teams while pursuing a master’s degree in biomechanics overseas from 2018-19, and made stints with the Tigres del Licey of the Dominican Winter League, Sydney Blue Sox of the Australian League, Arizona State University, Louisiana State University, Chicago White Sox (2013-14), and St. Louis Cardinals (2012), where she originally got her start in the Minor Leagues as a strength and conditioning coaching intern. Balkovec, who is bilingual, played four seasons of collegiate softball at the University of New Mexico as she earned a bachelor’s degree in Kinesiology and Exercise Science before receiving her master’s degree in Sports Administration from Louisiana State University.

Kanthan has joined Miami as Director, Baseball Operations after serving five seasons with the Texas Rangers organization, including the last two as their Assistant Director of Baseball Operations. With the Rangers, he played a role in all aspects of the department, overseeing roster management, administrative, and contract responsibilities for the Major League club, while also playing a large role in the Sport Science and Performance space. The New Jersey native originally got his start in Major League Baseball in 2016, working in Ticket Services for the Phillies before spending the 2017-18 seasons in Baseball Operations with the Rays. Kanthan graduated from Rutgers University with a bachelor’s degree in Biotechnology and Sport Management, while minoring in Biochemistry.

Piliere joins the Marlins as Director, Amateur Scouting, overseeing the club’s amateur scouts in his new role, while also taking lead in the First-Year Player Draft. He most recently served three seasons as the Seattle Mariners’ Assistant Director of Amateur Scouting in a six-year stint with the organization. His experience also includes advance and pro scouting, national crosschecking, and working as a contributing writer and analyst for sites such as FanGraphs and D1Baseball.com. A native of upstate New York, Piliere previously worked for both the Cleveland Guardians and Texas Rangers organizations. 

The Marlins begin the 2024 season at home vs. the Pittsburgh Pirates on Thursday, March 28 at 4:10 p.m. For more information on the Miami Marlins, head to Marlins.com.