MILWAUKEE -- Nestor Corredor is the Brewers’ Major League field coordinator, catching guru and a mentor to the club’s Latin American contingent of players. Now he can add yet another title.
American citizen.
Corredor, 40, who has been with the Brewers since signing out of Venezuela in 2002, and a member of the Major League coaching staff for the last five seasons, missed Monday’s win over the Orioles at American Family Field to travel home to Arizona, where he passed a citizenship test and had a private naturalization ceremony.
“It was in a small office, me and the officer and that’s it,” Corredor said. “It was special because she knew I was nervous and excited. She was really nice.”
It was the culmination of a process that began in 2015 when Corredor and his wife, Yohanna, decided to move full-time to the U.S. from Venezuela to build a more stable life for their two sons, Julio and Matthew. They have been based in Arizona ever since, and Corredor was able to be on hand last week when his eldest graduated from high school in west Phoenix.
Corredor, who played in the Brewers system through 2008 and then transitioned into managing and coaching beginning in 2010, enlisted help from the club a decade ago to begin the long process toward citizenship. He got a green card in 2019, but wanted to take the next step and become a citizen to help open doors for his sons should they choose to continue their education in college.
“I did it mostly for my kids so they would have the best opportunity," Corredor said. “Last week was hard because it put a lot of pressure on me. For my family, I had to pass the test no matter what. Yesterday at 4 o’clock, it was a big relief.”
Almost immediately, the texts and calls started coming from Milwaukee. Fellow coaches inquired about Corredor’s results. So did William Contreras and Jackson Chourio, who asked, “Are you a Gringo now?”
“He’s so valuable and so wonderful for us,” Brewers manager Pat Murphy said. “I’m really happy for him and his family.”
For Corredor, it was a relief after years of waiting for this moment.
“Yesterday was a great day,” Corredor said. “It’s been 48 hours of a lot of emotion.”