Meet the first Latina GM in Minor League history

Minor League executive Veronica Hernández did not immediately consider a career in baseball when she began applying for jobs after graduating from Ithaca College in N.Y. with a degree in sports media. Hernández, an athlete who had played multiple sports while growing up in Connecticut and favored soccer, envisioned herself working for FIFA, the international soccer governing body, not becoming a baseball trailblazer.

But it turned out to be one of the few sports she hadn’t initially considered that ultimately gave her the first crack at a front office job. In 2015, she accepted an offer from the Danbury Westerners of the New England Collegiate Baseball League and soon found herself interning for the Hudson Valley Renegades (then part of the Tampa Bay Rays organization and now the High-A affiliate of the New York Yankees.)

“From there it was just a snowball,” says Hernández, who has not only risen quickly through the Minor League ranks but has made some history in the process: On May 11, she was named general manager of the California League’s Modesto Nuts, the Single-A affiliate of the Seattle Mariners. Hernández, the daughter of Colombian immigrants, is the first ever Latina general manager in Minor League Baseball history.

Currently one of three Minor League general managers of Latin American descent and one of seven women who serve in the role across the 120 affiliates, Hernández joined Modesto’s front office in 2018 as director of marketing and promotions. She was named assistant general manager in January before being promoted to her current post. Before joining Modesto, she also worked for the Arkansas Travelers (Mariners Double-A affiliate) and the Lancaster JetHawks (former Colorado Rockies High-A affiliate.)

While the GM of a Major League team focuses on baseball operations, as the GM of a Minor League club, Hernández is responsible for overseeing everything from marketing to sponsorships to ticketing, while also coordinating travel and housing for the team. Connecting with the local community is also a key aspect of her role, and her heritage and fluency in Spanish have been a boon in that regard. Located approximately 68 miles south of Sacramento, Modesto has a population that is around 40 percent Hispanic, according to the most recent Census data.

“When I first got onto the team, I was the only front office Spanish speaker, so I was able to go out and now have a new opportunity to just go to these Latin events and talk about our whole organization in Spanish,” Hernández says.

Those language skills also allow her to aid players from Latin America who pass through Modesto in their transition to a new country and a new culture. “That sense of home is super important, so having someone speak in your native language makes it so much easier,” she says.

Hernández is part of a tidal wave of women that have broken barriers in baseball, from the field to the front office, in the last few years. Among the most notable was Kim Ng, who became the first female GM in MLB history when the Marlins hired her in November 2020. In February, Elizabeth Benn made history as the highest-ranking female baseball operations employee in Mets history when she was named director of Major League operations. And last month, Rachel Balkovec of the Tampa Tarpons became the first full-time female manager in affiliated baseball history. Those are just a few examples.

Described as “a rising star in our industry” by her predecessor, Hernández says her main goal is to help Modesto win a California League championship. But there are other objectives driving her too.

“I would love to build a staff, build a culture that people want to stay the next decade for,” she says. “I know that's a little bit harder to come by, especially in Minor League Baseball, because the way you get those promotions is by moving across the country, and I understand that. But I want to put together an internal program here that makes it very difficult for them to want to leave.”