Here’s the latest on coaching changes around the majors:
- Former big league infielder Alex Cora will take over the Astros’ vacant bench coach position, as Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports first reported on Twitter. Long noted as a potential future MLB manager, Cora will return to uniform alongside Houston skipper A.J. Hinch. Since his 14-year major league career ended in 2011, Cora has served as an ESPN analyst and worked for Puerto Rico’s national team; he is the general manager of the team’s 2017 World Baseball Classic entrant. Hinch spoke of his new bench coach’s potential to provide “impact an entire roster of players,” as Jake Kaplan of the Houston Chronicle reports. Cora will take over for Trey Hillman, who left the Astros to manage in the KBO.
- The Rockies have hired Mike Redmond as bench coach, per a team announcement. He’ll be a top lieutenant to new skipper Bud Black. The 45-year-old, a long-time major league catcher, managed the Marlins from the 2013 season through early in the 2015 campaign. Redmond will join Black in attempting to steer Colorado back to a winning record. The organization has signaled that it’ll boost its payroll and seems intent on competing after a relatively hopeful 2016 season.
- Glenn Sherlock has joined the Mets as their new third base coach, replacing Tim Teufel, the club announced. Tuefel will be re-assigned if he chooses to stick with the organization. As for Sherlock, he’ll not only wave runners home but will be tasked with working with the Mets’ catchers. He has long worked with the Diamondbacks in a variety of coaching capacities. A former minor league backstop, Sherlock will be looked to as a key figure in the development of Travis d’Arnaud and Kevin Plawecki. That pair of touted catchers has yet to deliver consistently at the major league level, and their continued growth figures to be an important factor for the Mets in 2017 and beyond.