Rockers Field Manager Chris Krepline returns after guiding Rockers to first NWL title
Ashwaubenon, Wis.- The Green Bay Rockers are pleased to announce Lawrence University head coach Chris Krepline will be returning for a third summer as field manager of the Rockers, his 6th season overall in the Northwoods League. Joining Krepline in the dugout will be pitching coach Josh Teichroew (1st season), hitting coach Cody Hartman (3rd season), and assistant coach Nathan Bonter (2nd Season). In total, the coaching staff possesses a combined 13 years of experience in the Northwoods League.
“I am grateful to owner Mark Skogen and GM John Fanta for the opportunity to continue to lead the Rockers this summer,” said Krepline. “Being raised in the area, it is rewarding to have the opportunity to lead an organization that has brought such a passion for baseball to Green Bay. I am excited to build off the energy that came along with winning the Northwoods League Championship last summer.”
Krepline currently serves as the Head Baseball Coach at Lawrence University in Appleton, where he has led the program since 2018. He first joined the Rockers in the summer of 2022 after spending the 2021 season as an assistant coach for the Minnesota Mud Puppies. Krepline also served as an assistant coach for the Green Bay Bullfrogs during the 2013 season and was a pitcher for the team in 2007 during its inaugural season in the League.
Last spring Krepline guided the Lawrence program to the 4th most wins in school history and recruited a team that broke the team single season home run record with 51 long balls and strikeout record with 303. During the summer, he oversaw a Rockers team that led the entire Northwoods League with 66 home runs and pitching staff that led the Great Lakes Division with 631 strikeouts. The Rockers finished the season with a 45-31 overall record and won the franchise’s first Northwoods League Championship.
Prior to being selected to lead the program he also spent time as an assistant coach for the Vikings (2013-2015). In between his two stints at Lawrence, Krepline served as an assistant coach at St. Norbert College where he worked extensively with the pitching staff for four seasons (2015-2018). Prior to starting his coaching career, Krepline played professional baseball for two years with stints on the Lake County Fielders, Macon Pinetoppers, Saskatchewan Silver Sox and Rockford River Hawks. A native of Reedsville, Wisconsin, Krepline and his wife Bri reside in Appleton with their three children.
Josh Teichroew will enter his first season with the Rockers as pitching coach. He is currently serving his first season as the head coach and his seventh year overall at Mount Mary University in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. Before being named head coach, he oversaw the pitching staff and was the recruiting coordinator at Mount Mary.
Teichroew’s coaching resume includes two stints in the Northwoods League, in 2021 and 2023, when he served as pitching coach for the Willmar Stingers. He has also coached summer baseball in the Coastal Plains League for the Macon Bacon in 2020, guiding them to a league championship. In 2018, Teichroew was an assistant for the Western Nebraska Pioneers of the summer collegiate Expedition League where he helped guide the team to an Expedition League Championship that year. He is a graduate of Mount Mary College and pitched for the Lancers during his playing career. He was named Honorable Mention All-GPAC his junior season while recording 18 pitching appearances in one season, a school record at the time.
Cody Hartman, currently the hitting coach at Upper Iowa University, returns for a third season in Green Bay as the hitting coach and third base coach for the Rockers. This will be his fourth summer in the Northwoods League, as he served in the same role alongside Krepline as a coach for the Minnesota Mud Puppies of the Northwoods League in 2021. Prior to his time at Upper Iowa, he spent a season as the hitting coach at Williston State College and three years coaching for Vista Ridge High School baseball in Colorado Springs. He is a graduate of Williston State College and is a native of Silverthorne, Colorado.
Nathan Bonter returns for a second season in Green Bay as first base coach after helping guide the Rockers to a 2023 Northwoods League Championship alongside Krepline and Hartman. He is now a two-time Northwoods League Champion after spending the summer of 2022 as an assistant coach for the Kalamazoo Growlers, who won the League title that year. Bonter is currently serving as an assistant coach at Rose-Hulman University in Indiana. He joined Rose-Hulman after a stint at Millikin University in Dacatur, Illinois where he served as the infield instructor and assistant hitting coach during the 2023 spring season. Bonter graduated from Grand Valley State in 2021 with a bachelor’s degree in Sport Management and earned his master’s in Exercise Science from Calvin University in 2022 where he finished his playing career. Bonter was the Team MVP and Freshman of the Year for his Muskegon Community College team and went on to be an All-Conference first baseman for Grand Valley State in 2019.
Opening Day is set for Tuesday, May 28th at 6:35 against the Wausau Woodchucks. Season ticket packages, group tickets and the ever-popular Flex Packs are available now. Visit www.greenbayrockers.com or call the ticket office at 920-497-7225 to reserve your seats today. The Rockers front office at Capital Credit Union Park is located at 2231 Holmgren Way in Ashwaubenon. Office hours are Monday-Friday 8:30am-5pm.
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The Green Bay Rockers are a member of the finest developmental league for elite college baseball players, the Northwoods League. The Northwoods League is the proven leader in the development of elite college baseball players. Having recently completed its’ 30th season, the Northwoods League is the largest organized baseball league in the world with 26 teams, drawing significantly more fans, in a friendly ballpark experience, than any league of its kind. A valuable training ground for coaches, umpires, and front office staff, over 325 Northwoods League players have advanced to Major League Baseball, including three-time All-Star and 2016 Roberto Clemente Award winner Curtis Granderson, three-time Cy Young Award winner and World Series Champion Max Scherzer (NYM), two-time World Series Champions Ben Zobrist and Brandon Crawford (SFG) and World Series Champion Chris Sale (BOS). As well as 2019 Rookie of the Year and 2019/2021 Home Run Derby Champion Pete Alonso (NYM) and 2021 All-Star, MLB Gold Glove winner and 2019 Second Team All-MLB shortstop Marcus Semien (TEX). All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League website. League games are viewable live at watchnwl.com and on ESPN+. For more information, visit www.greenbayrockers.com or download the new Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store or on Google Play and set the Rockers as your favorite team.
