Rachel Folden Promoted to I-Cubs Hitting Coach

We’ve got some exciting minor league news with Rachel Folden being promoted to hitting coach for the Triple-A Iowa Cubs Folden has been in the Cubs’ system for several years, serving as a hitting lab tech, minor league hitting coordinator, and hitting coach for the Double-A Tennessee Smokies. While the Cubs have not yet officially announced their minor league staffs, Folden’s LinkedIn profile was recently updated to reflect the new role and CI has confirmed the move.

Prior to joining the Cubs, Folden was a four-time All-American softball player at Marshall University and starred for five seasons in National Pro Fastpitch. She founded Folden Fastpitch in 2012 and has mentored innumerable hitters over the last decade-plus. Her ability to get the most out of her players is why Cubs director of hitting Justin Stone tabbed her for his staff a little over five years ago.

Folden has worked with several of the top prospects in the organization since late 2019, so promoting her to Triple-A makes a ton of sense. The I-Cubs should have a bulk of those players to begin the season, which lets her get time with them before they’re called to Chicago. Based on her own movement through the system, it’s very possible Folden herself will receive a call to join the big club in the near future.

No matter how the Cubs do it, keeping Folden in the organization needs to be one of the top priorities on the development side over the next few years.