Longtime Giants outfielder named manager of country seeking first World Baseball Classic appearance since 2013 originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
Marvin Benard played his last Major League game with the San Francisco Giants in 2003.
The outfielder spent his entire nine-year career with the NL West club, hitting 54 home runs and accumulating an 8.6 bWAR. Benard wasn't necessarily a star, but he was a solid everyday role player.
Benard's future in professional baseball will now include what he hopes is a stop at the next edition of the World Baseball Classic. According to a report from Francys Romero on X, Spain has appointed him as its manager for the Premier12 qualifiers.
"Marvin Benard has been named the new manager of Spain, which will compete in the Premier12 qualifiers in October 2026 and likely in the World Baseball Classic Qualifier in 2028," Romero wrote Monday.
Benard hopes to lead Spain to the next WBC
The only time Spain has qualified for the WBC was in 2013, but they finished in last place in Pool C with a 0-3 record. They were grouped with the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, and Venezuela.
Following this year's WBC, the countries that must qualify for the next WBC include Panama, Brazil, Czechia, and Benard's home country of Nicaragua.
In 2002, Benard admitted to using steroids during the Giants' run to the World Series.
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