TAMPA, Fla. — Rachel Balkovec, hired by the New York Yankees as the first woman to manage a minor league affiliate of a Major League Baseball team, is nearing a return after being hit in the face by a batted ball during a drill last week.
Balkovec was struck on March 22, causing her to miss her first scheduled spring training game two days later with Class A Tampa.
“I saw her last night; she’s starting to feel better,” Kevin Reese, Yankees vice president of player development, said Wednesday. “I think she’s getting close to being back on the field.