The French Baseball and Softball Federation (FFBS) has announced that Kieran Mattison will take over as new head coach of the French Baseball National Team. The 35-year-old South Carolina native is a former minor league player with the Kansas City Royals, Cleveland Indians and Los Angeles Dodgers. He also played independent league ball and in Taiwan.
He came to France to play for Paris UC in 2012 and reached the finals with them in 2014. After the 2014 season he joined the Pittsburgh Pirates as a coach. He additionally also has been an assistant coach with the French National Team in the last couple of years. His first official assignment will be the All-Star Game in July and the Yoshida Challenge in early September in preparation for the European Championship in Hoofddorp.
He is succeeding former Major League reliever Eric Gagne as manager of the French National Team.