A look at Indians new manager Brian Esposito

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) – Happening Friday, the Indians playing at Victory Field and WISH-TV will bring it to you live.

The head coach is new to the team this season. Coach Brian Esposito was hired in January this year. The team is just under 500 right now but News 8’s Joe Melillo wanted to sit down with “Espo” to find out more about him and what he thinks about Indianapolis.

Coach Esposito is from Staten Island, New York and like any baseball player he wanted to make it to the big leagues. He did eventually play three games with the St. Louis Cardinals and the Houston Astros as a catcher.

When he realized his playing career was coming to an end, he switched over to coaching. Esposito says it was an easy transition.

In March 2013, he signed with the Pittsburgh Pirates as a player-coach in Indiana. More recently, he managed the Pirates Single-A West Virginia team, winning a club record 87 games in 2015. Melillo asked him what he sees as his main goal as a manager 

“I provide a more 30,000 foot view for these guys,” said Esposito. “What it looks like down the road,  what I am looking at right now and how I am going to move this forward, constructing the line up and constructing the actual player plans that the origination puts forth. Where are we at, what are trying to do and what it looks like down the road. Everyday is just the day for me to come out and do the best I can at helping someone else do the best they can. ” 

Espo says he would like to manage a big league team eventually but for right now he is happy that he in Indianapolis.

He also says he hoped to get as many guys up to the Pirates as possible.

News 8 also got his thoughts on a couple of other topics. What does Espo do in his free time? the answer, golf.

What Netflix shows does he binge on?  He said nothing recent but always loves running through the Sopranos seasons on loop.

Finally, I asked a big one for Hoosiers, does he play basketball? “You got to be really athletic and really tall which is something I don’t have the build for,” said Esposito.