A chat with new Kernels skipper Bill Mosiello

A chat with new Kernels skipper Bill Mosiello

February 23, 2009, 10:48 pm
Filed under: Minor league baseball | Tags: Arizona State, Auburn, Battle Creek Yankees, Bill Mosiello, Bobby Magallanes, Bruce Hines, Burlington Bees, Cal State-Fullerton, Cedar Rapids Kernels, Charleston River Dogs, Colorado Rockies, Ever Magallanes, Keith Johnson, Los Angels Angels of Anaheim, Midwest League, Minor league baseball, New York Yankees, spring training, Tennessee

Bill Mosiello

Was able to catch up with 2009 Cedar Rapids Kernels Manager Bill Mosiello via phone Monday afternoon. Seems like a very good guy, which continues the string of “good guy” managers the Kernels have had in recent seasons.

Here’s a short story on Mosiello that’ll run sometime in the newspaper this week:

By Jeff Johnson
The Gazette
CEDAR RAPIDS – He had an offer on the table from the Colorado Rockies. Then the Los Angeles Angels called Bill Mosiello that same day, and his summer destination was clear … Cedar Rapids.
“God’s a great man, and he has done some great things for me in my life,” the 2009 Cedar Rapids Kernels Manager said. “When that happened, it was a no-brainer.”
Mosiello, 44, takes over a Kernels club that was originally supposed to be led by 2008 manager Keith Johnson. But longtime minor-league field coordinator Bruce Hines left the Angels in early January to take a major league job with Seattle, causing a ripple effect of moves, with Johnson being promoted to high-Class A Rancho Cucamonga.
Having pro experience as a manager and hitting coach in the New York Yankees system, Mosiello was hired by the Angels in late January. He had been an assistant coach at Auburn University, with assistant’s experience at other powerhouse programs such as Arizona State, Southern California, Cal State-Fullerton and Tennessee.
“When I decided to maybe get back into (pro ball), my wife was all for it,” Mosiello said. “But it just had to be the right place. The Angels are a special organization top to bottom.
“What I believe in and what I do (instructing) is exactly the way the Angels teach. They think the way I think. It was a perfect fit.”
Mosiello is in big-league spring training with the Angels and said he hasn’t gotten much of a chance to ask about the possible makeup of his Kernels team. Cedar Rapids made the Midwest League playoffs last season, losing to eventual champion Burlington in the second round.
Mosiello has experience in the Midwest League, managing 109 games for Battle Creek in 2004. He took over early in the season after former Kernels manager Mitch Seaone was let go by the Yankees.
He also managed low-A Charleston of the South Atlantic League for two seasons before heading back to the college game.
“Ballparks are what you care about,” Mosiello said. “I know Grand Rapids is a beautiful ballpark. Dayton is such a special place, I’d love to play there 30 games a season.
“I remember Cedar Rapids being a really neat place, too, when we were playing there. I played with Ever Magallanes and coached Bobby Magallanes (former Kernels managers), and they both had nothing but good things to say about being in Cedar Rapids. I’m looking forward to getting there.”
Minor-league pitchers and catchers report for spring training March 8 and 9, Mosiello said, with position players reporting the following week. The Kernels’ 2009 season opens April 9 at home against Beloit.

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