Cesar Martin to manage Dominican Republic in WBSC Premier12
Cesar Martin will manage World No. 12 Dominican Republic at the WBSC Premier12 2024 presented by RAXUS.
Born in 1979, Martin is a former professional third baseman who transitioned early to a coaching role. He has managed in the Toronto Blue Jays farm system since 2013 and has earned Manager of the Year honours at the Class A (2015) and High-A (2019) levels. He managed the Double-A New Hampshire Fisher Cats in 2024.
Martin has also coached in the Dominican Professional Winter League, serving as the bench coach for the Estrellas Orientales (2022-23 season) and Licey Tigres (2023-24).
"We are thrilled to have Cesar Martin as our manager," commented General Manager Henry González. "We think is the right guy to get the best from our players."
The coaching staff will add a lot of Major League Baseball (MLB) experience to the mix.
Martin will count on former MLB star pitcher and Dominican Republic Hall of Famer Ramon Martinez. The Toronto Blue Jays Minor League Infield Coordinator Danny Solano will be the bench coach.
Ervin Santana, who had a 16-year MLB career and represented the Dominican Republic at the 2017 World Baseball Classic and the Premier12 2019, will be the pitching coach. Ramon Santiago will be the third base coach, the same role he had with the Detroit Tigers. Anderson Hernandez will be the first base coach. Former Leones de Escogido manager Ronny Paulino will be the hitting coach. José Cano, a Tokyo 2020 bronze medallist, will be the bullpen coach.
Santiago and Cano were on the Dominican Republic World Baseball Classic staff.
The Dominican Republic will compete in Group B and face No. 1 Japan, No. 2 Chinese Taipei, No. 6 Korea, No. 9 Cuba and No. 15 Australia.
Group A includes No. 2 Mexico, No. 4 Venezuela, No. 5 USA, No. 7 Netherlands, No. 8 Puerto Rico and No. 10 Panama.