The Padres announced their coaching staff for the 2023 season this afternoon. There are a few shakeups for Bob Melvin’s second season leading the San Diego dugout.
Ryan Christenson has been given the title of associate manager. The 48-year-old joined Melvin in making the jump from the A’s to the Padres last offseason. Christenson had been Melvin’s bench coach in Oakland from 2018-21 and took on that same role for his first season in San Diego. He now earns a bump in title to associate manager, though his position as Melvin’s top lieutenant seems unchanged.
Filling the role of bench coach is Ryan Flaherty, who’s going into year four on the San Diego staff. He also gets the title of offensive coordinator, essentially taking on the hitting coach duties vacated when Michael Brdar was poached by the Tigers at the start of the offseason. San Diego will go without anyone assuming the traditional “hitting coach” title.
The 36-year-old Flaherty has spent the past two seasons as a quality control coach. He drew interest from the Mets in their bench coach search last offseason, but the Friars denied New York’s interview request. One year later, the former Orioles infielder gets both that title and the lead hitting responsibilities in San Diego.
He’ll be joined on staff by assistant hitting coaches Scott Coolbaugh and Oscar Bernard. The 56-year-old Coolbaugh joins the Friars after two years as the lead hitting instructor with the Tigers. He’d also previously served as hitting coach in Baltimore and Texas and an assistant role with the White Sox. He brings plenty of coaching experience to help Flaherty in his first crack as offensive coordinator.
Bernard, meanwhile, gets promoted to the MLB staff after seven years as San Diego’s minor league hitting coordinator. The 39-year-old spent some time as a player and instructor in the Cubs’ minor league system before joining the Friars in 2016. It’s the first big league staff job for the Dominican Republic native. Also joining the group is catching coach Brian Esposito. The 43-year-old spent last season managing the Friars’ Low-A affiliate in Fort Wayne.
The rest are holdovers from last season. Ruben Niebla is back for a second year as pitching coach, pairing with bullpen coach Ben Fritz. Matt Williams and David Macias will coach the bases and defense — Williams the infield, Macias the outfield — with Peter Summerville and Herberto Andrade as coaching assistants. Former big league managers Bryan Price and Mike Shildt will reassume the advisory roles they manned in 2022.
Alot of titles and coaches but if it means success then why not…
What is an associate manager?
He manages the associates?
Yea
He associates with the manager. They pal around together.
He collects, organizes, and collates the TPS reports. Also, there’s lots of weekend work.
The Rangers hired one too
What does the fox say?
Gets paid to associate with associates
Is he the associate manager or associate to the manager?
beat me to it lol
Sounding less derogatory, the title of associate is often used instead of assistant nowadays.
Years ago they started calling sales people, sales associates. I got the title of associate producer for helping to raise cash for an independent film.
Isn’t that pretty much what a bench coach is?
It’s no different in the workplace. There are so many more titles than 10 years ago. The more titles that can be made up the more promotions that can be given. Looks good on the resume. Associate Manager
What the he’ll is going on with baseball? Trying to hard to change a very simple game.
Starting to sound like a grocery store…. Who will be the regional manager?
Wow, first he plays the role of Anakin Skywalker and now this! Truly a man of all seasons!
Nah, the man of all seasons was Ducky Schofield.
Associate Manager in charge of Dugout Activities and Gatorade Distribution (Western Division)
It means they have an old manager that may be done soon and are grooming a replacement. Same thing as Texas.
What’s next, Jr Associate Manager?
Team Mom?
1st Mate or 2nd mate?
The San Diego Padres will never win because they keep select the wrong manager each time.
Till their hire either Joe Madden or Ron Washington it will be no World series for them
Yea, Joe Madden…sure, that’ll bring a ring! Ron Washington is someone I’ve always agreed with but, Melvin is the guy currently. Melvin did better last year, with a full season then anyone since Bochy.
Silliness continues to enter the game.
Aren’t these clubhouses crammed enough without creating nonsensical titles for more coaches.
I digress however, as the advent of “Associate Manager” got Wil Venable off of Alex Cora’s coaching staff
what the heck is a quality control coach?
i feel old…
In other news, Luis Campusano has been named Padres Associate Catcher.
COO (chief offense officer)
CIC (chief infielders coach)
COC ( chief outfielders coach)
RBS (Ringworm’s baby sitter)
Very important to have C-level management, and to be privileged to be able to speak with the C-level management in the dugout and not be relegated to just the Manager, Associate Manager and Coaches.
Title inflation is real
Gentrification has come to baseball.
Assistant to the Regional Manager
Why do MLBTR writers never start the sentence with the word meanwhile? I notice them using that word all the time, but always in the middle. You can start sentences with it.