CONCORD, N.C. – Each Wednesday, a new edition of #MorningsWith airs live on the Hendrick Motorsports Twitter account, introducing fans to teammates all across the organization’s Concord, North Carolina, campus.
This week, we got to know Gene Monahan, Hendrick Motorsports’ athletic trainer and former New York Yankees trainer.
Monahan spent 49 seasons in the Yankees organization, beginning in the minor leagues near his hometown in Florida out of high school. After 10 years, he was called up to New York and began working with the major league team as a trainer in 1973, remaining there through his retirement in 2011.
Growing up, baseball was Monahan’s favorite sport, and the opportunity to work for the Yankees was one of a lifetime.
“When the opportunity presented itself, who would have thought somebody from South Florida, where there was no baseball, major league-wise, that this could happen,” Monahan said.
Monahan has been with Hendrick Motorsports since 2012 after retiring from the Yankees, and the veteran trainer sees a few similarities between the two organizations.
“It was a perfect fit, a perfect match with this organization,” Monahan said. “Hendrick Motorsports to me, are the Yankees of racing. I’ve been blessed to be able to work for both.”
Hear more about Monahan’s experiences as an athletic trainer for baseball players and pit crew athletes in the full edition of #MorningsWith below.