Nava’s goal is to get back, as coach or manager

Back surgery and the pandemic ended Daniel Nava’s playing career in 2020. That wasn’t what he intended but circumstances intervened. “I wanted to get back on the field and see where it could take me,” he said. “Unfortunately, it didn’t happen. It wasn’t intentional, it was just the way it was.”

Now Nava is on a new road, working for the Dodgers in player development with the goal of returning to the majors as a coach and eventually a manager.

Nava, who turns 41 next month, is the organization’s outfield coordinator. He managed High A Great Lakes to the second-best record in the Midwest League last year. The season ended with a one-run loss in the championship game.

Nava has been with the Dodgers since 2021, working as a hitting coach and bench coach before managing. He’s seeing a new side of the game and learning to take pride in the success of others.

“The biggest adjustment is the mind-set,” Nava said. “You go to the park as an observer of everyone else. When you’re playing, you’re focused on yourself and what you’re doing and how your body’s feeling. As a coach, nobody cares about you. That’s the biggest switch.

“As a player, you can have a direct contribution to help your team win. That’s a high level of satisfaction. As a manager, it’s more about getting a player ready for the next level.

“That’s why I want to coach at the highest level, because contributing to a win at the big leagues is completely different than the impact of a win in the minors.”

Nava has a built-in empathy that allows him to connect with any player. He started his professional career as an undrafted independent league player who was sold to the Red Sox for $1 in 2008 and went on to play 134 games for the 2013 World Series champions, starting seven games in the postseason.

“In terms of success and failure, I’ve seen it all. I was locked in on survival,” Nava said. “That’s something I can share with players. I won the World Series but I was also [designated for assignment] more times than I can count. I felt like a father figure to a lot of the players last season.

“No matter what happened, I could say, ‘Sit on down, let’s talk.’ I could relate to them.”

Analytics-based coaching techniques and strategies became increasingly popular during Nava’s career. He’s getting comfortable with incorporating data in how he coaches.

“The Dodgers are good at thinking about how a staff member can grow and develop by understanding different sides of the game,” he said. “You have to find a way to make it stick for our players.

“They have patience with us, understanding there won’t be instantaneous understanding of all those intricacies and how to apply them. They’re great about that.”

Nava has crossed paths with Mookie Betts in spring training and talked about their time as teammates in Boston.

“He’s still the same guy he was when he was first called up,” Nava said. “Inquisitive, trying to learn new things and better himself. I’ll put it this way: The Dodgers are very grateful they have him. He’s worth his weight in gold.”

Nava was thrilled in December when he heard Red Sox radio announcer Joe Castiglione was named the winner of the Hall of Fame’s Ford C. Frick Award.

When Nava made his debut in 2010, Castiglione advised him before the game to swing at the first pitch he saw.

He did and belted a grand slam off Joe Blanton at Fenway Park. Nava and Castiglione have been friends since.

“I couldn’t be happier for Joe,” Nava said. “He’s so consistent with how he treats people. It’s the same class and humility with everybody. There’s not some story about Joe that you don’t know. He’s just such a good person. Now he’ll be remembered as one of the great announcers.”

Nava also is excited to see how former teammate Craig Breslow fares running the Red Sox.

“They have a good one,” Nava said. “Craig is a special person. When you talk to him, you see how grounded he is. He’s such a smart guy, but he didn’t make you feel like you weren’t. He knew how to communicate.

“I would be shocked, just from seeing how he operated as a player, that he wouldn’t find success in the front office. There’s nobody who has a better understanding of what it takes.”

As a player, Nava realized he was past his prime. But he’s a relatively young man in his new profession. The goal is the same: Get to the majors.

“I would love to be a manager,” he said. “A lot of things I learned at the end of my career really opened my eyes to things I overlooked as a younger player. I was fortunate to play for [Terry Francona] and Torey [Lovullo] and drew a lot from them when I managed in the minors.

“What they did for me as a player, that’s what I want to pass along to somebody else.”