Incumbent hitting coach Justin Viele will retain his title, tweets Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area. He and Burrell are co-hitting coaches, while Pedro Guerrero is returning as an assistant hitting coach. According to Pavlovic, assistant hitting coach Dustin Lind will not be back in 2024.

San Francisco also announced a few holdovers from last year’s group. Mark Hallberg, Alyssa Nakken, J.P. Martinez and Taria Uematsu are all returning to the staff. Hallberg is moving across the diamond from third base to first base coach. Martinez remains an assistant pitching coach, while Nakken and Uematsu are assistant coaches.

None of the additions are surprising, as all three had been rumored to join the staff. Christenson’s strong relationship with Melvin has led him from Oakland to San Diego and back to the Bay Area. He worked as a bench coach in Oakland and San Diego and spent this year as the associate manager for the Friars.

Burrell, a former number one overall pick, was a two-time World Series winner during his 12-year MLB career. The second of those titles came in San Francisco, where he closed his playing days in 2010 and ’11. Burrell hit .253/.361/.472 with just under 300 home runs in the big leagues. The Miami product has coached in the Giants’ minor league ranks going back to 2020.

Williams, of course, had an excellent playing career in his own right. The five-time All-Star got a managerial job with the Nationals in 2014. He led Washington to a 96-win season to earn the NL Manager of the Year award in his first season. After the team went 83-79 during his second year at the helm, the Nationals dismissed him and hired Dusty Baker. Williams has subsequently spent time on the Diamondbacks, A’s and Padres staffs (overlapping with Melvin in the latter two places) and managed for two seasons in South Korea.

There’s still more to come on the coaching front in San Francisco. The team has not announced the future for pitching coach Andrew Bailey, who has reportedly considered leaving to take a position closer to his family on the East Coast.

Justin Viele, Pedro Guerrero and Dustin Lind are the Giants’ trio of incumbent hitting coaches, yet given the club’s lackluster offense in 2023, it isn’t surprising change might be coming.  The pitching staff’s results were more up-and-down, yet Slusser notes that pitching coach Andrew Bailey “is extremely well regarded” and has often been considered by other teams for jobs in their organizations.  If Vogelsong did become pitching coach, the Giants could look to retain Bailey as bench coach or as the director of pitching, but Bailey also might prefer a new role with a team nearer to his family on the East Coast.  Vogelsong has been working as a roving instructor within the Giants organization, while Burrell has been the hitting coach for the Giants’ Single-A affiliate.

More on other coaching situations around baseball…

• The Angels have hired Dom Chiti as a minor league pitching coordinator, The Athletic’s Britt Ghiroli reports (via X).  Chiti previously worked for Los Angeles as a special assistant and then as bullpen coach from 2020-22, before joining the Mets as their bullpen coach for the 2023 season.  The 64-year-old Chiti has over four decades of experience in a variety of coaching and front office roles with the Angels, Mets, Rangers, Indians, and Orioles.
• The Athletics are parting ways with bullpen coach Mike McCarthy, Fangraphs’ David Laurila writes.  2023 was McCarthy’s first year on Oakland’s coaching staff, and his first year on a big league staff altogether.  Before joining the A’s, McCarthy spent five seasons coaching for the Triple-A affiliates of the Padres and Twins.

JAN. 30th: Pat Burrell is retiring, MLBTR has learned.  We last heard from Pat the Bat in November, when the 35-year-old told the AP, "I have not decided yet, but I don't think I can play anymore [due to a chronic foot injury].  It hurts me to say that."

Burrell was drafted first overall by the Phillies in 1998 as a third baseman out of the University of Miami, but spent the bulk of his career as a left fielder.  In nine seasons with the Phillies, he hit .257/.367/.485 with 251 home runs.  His home run total ranks fourth all-time for the Phillies, behind only Del Ennis, Ryan Howard, and Mike Schmidt.  He finished fourth in the 2000 Rookie of the Year voting, and received MVP votes in '02 and '05.  Burrell had stints with the Rays and Giants to finish his career, during which he earned approximately $71MM in big league salary and scored a pair of World Series rings.

Photo courtesy of Icon SMI.

• Bidding for the Dodgers is down to three groups according to Bill Shaikin of The Los Angeles Times (on Twitter): Steven Cohen & Patrick Soon-Shiong, Magic Johnson & Stan Kasten, and Stan Kroenke.
• The Rangers and agent Jay Franklin met on Friday to discuss a contract extension for Ian Kinsler, writes MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan. Franklin is “not very optimistic” a deal will be reached before the season. Kinsler is under contract for 2012 with a $10MM club option for 2013.
• Commissioner Bud Selig is "working actively behind the scenes" to find a resolution between the Giants and Athletics regarding Oakland's stadium situation according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports.
• Pat Burrell has formally agreed to scout for the Giants this season, reports Hank Schulman of The San Francisco Chronicle. The slugger retired this offseason and is currently providing internal evaluations of San Francisco's prospects.
• Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports wrote about the evolution of the DH position, where clubs are using a rotation system similar to the Rangers last season.

Updated team decisions:

• The Giants won't offer arbitration to Pat Burrell (B) or Cody Ross (B) according to John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle (on Twitter). Carlos Beltran (A) contractually cannot be offered arbitration.
• The Dodgers declined to offer Hiroki Kuroda (B) arbitration, according to Dylan Hernandez of the LA Times (on Twitter). Rod Barajas (B) already signed with the Pirates.
• The Pirates offered arbitration to Derrek Lee (B) while declining to offer Ryan Ludwick (B) and Chris Snyder (B) arbitration. Ryan Doumit (B) already signed with the Twins. 
• The Phillies did not offer Roy Oswalt (A) or Brad Lidge (B) arbitration, according to the AP (via ESPN). The team announced that it offered arbitration to Raul Ibanez (B), Ryan Madson (A, will not cost signing team a draft pick), and Jimmy Rollins (A), according to Todd Zolecki of MLB.com (via Twitter).
• The Cubs offered arbitration to Carlos Pena (B) and Aramis Ramirez (B) but not to Kerry Wood (B), according to Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune (on Twitter).
• The Cardinals offered Edwin Jackson (B) and Albert Pujols (A) arbitration, but declined to make offers to Rafael Furcal (B) and Arthur Rhodes (B), according to Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (on Twitter). That leaves Octavio Dotel (modified B, no arbitration offer necessary).
• The Mets offered Jose Reyes (A) arbitration, according to Newsday's Ken Davidoff (on Twitter).
• The Padres will offer arbitration to Heath Bell (A, will not cost signing team a draft pick) and Aaron Harang (B), tweets Corey Brock of MLB.com.
• The Brewers offered Prince Fielder (A) and Francisco Rodriguez (A, will not cost signing team a draft pick) arbitration. They declined to offer Yuniesky Betancourt (B) arbitration. Takashi Saito (A), contractually cannot be offered arbitration.
• The Braves did not offer arbitration to Alex Gonzalez (B), according to David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

Teams with automatic decisions only:

• Reds: Francisco Cordero (modified B, no arbitration offer necessary), Ramon Hernandez (modified B, no arbitration offer necessary)
• Astros: Clint Barmes (B, already signed with Pirates)
• Rockies: Mark Ellis (B, already signed with Dodgers)

• Twins GM Terry Ryan said he remains interested in re-signing Michael Cuddyer, according to Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com. Ryan said he spoke with Cuddyer earlier this week and added that the Twins should have the flexibility in their projected $100MM 2012 payroll to make Cuddyer a fair offer. So far, the Phillies have been aggressively pursuing Cuddyer this offseason.
• Free agent outfielder/DH Pat Burrell, 35, said his career is likely over due to a nagging right foot injury, according to Janie McCauley of the Associated Press (via NBCSports.com). The former Phillie, Ray and Giant, however, has yet to make a final decision. The Phils made Burrell the No. 1 overall draft pick in 1998.
• Left-hander Dontrelle Willis is drawing a lot of interest on the free agent market, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (via Twitter). Willis pitched to a 5.00 ERA/4.10 FIP in 75 2/3 innings with the Reds in 2011.
• Mariners GM Jack Zduriencik said on MLB Network Radio that he is motivated to acquire an impact bat either through trade or free agency, tweets Jim Bowden.
• A pair of veteran scouts who follow the international free agent market predicted that Cuban outfielder Yoenis Cespedes would sign a bigger contract than the one fellow defector Aroldis Chapman signed with the Reds two offseasons ago, according to Danny Knobler of CBSSports.com. Chapman signed for six years and $30.5MM.

• Pat Burrell told Andrew Baggarly of the San Jose Mercury News that he'll give his chronic foot strain a month to recover before he decides on his future in baseball. If he does play again, it would only be with the Giants.
• Carlos Beltran told Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle that he'll give the Giants the first chance to sign him when he hits free agency this offseason (Twitter link). The Giants will have five days of exclusive negotiating rights after the World Series, plus the month of October.
• Carlos Lee hinted that he might retire after the 2012 season, when his six-year, $100MM contract expires with the Astros, according to Brian McTaggart of MLB.com. Lee, 35, says he wants to spend more time with his family.
• Hong-Chih Kuo told Ken Gurnick of MLB.com that he needs a break and is currently unsure if he'll play again. "If I want to still play and somebody wants to give me a try, I play," he said. "If not, fine with me. I'll miss it." The 30-year-old was sidelined with an anxiety disorder this year and may return home to Taiwan and open a restaurant. The Dodgers will consider non-tendering Kuo and he said he'll understand if they do.

• Pat Burrell could again sign a one-year deal when he hits free agency after the season (he earns $1MM this year), but he may have to retire because of a foot injury. Burrell says he’ll play as long as he’s healthy enough to take the field.
• Schulman says it’s hard to imagine the Giants offering Cody Ross a raise from $6.3MM or agreeing to a multiyear deal when the outfielder hits free agency.
• Mark DeRosa is hoping to sign closer to Atlanta, where he makes his home, and realizes he may be in line for a minor league deal.
• The Giants will probably decline Jeremy Affeldt’s $5MM option for 2012, but they’ll “almost certainly” pursue him in free agency, according to Schulman.
• Jonathan Sanchez and Andres Torres are non-tender candidates. When MLBTR’s Tim Dierkes identified Sanchez and Torres as non-tender candidates last month, he pointed out that Sanchez’s salary would rise over $6MM (he now earns $4.8MM) through arbitration. 
• Eli Whiteside is another non-tender candidate, Schulman writes.
• Jeff Keppinger, who’s arbitration eligible, will likely return in 2012 and it’s hard to imagine the Giants cutting Nate Schierholtz after seeing him progress in 2011.
• The Giants may not have room on the roster for both Mike Fontenot and Emmanuel Burriss.

• Indians right-hander Ubaldo Jimenez, acquired from the Rockies in a pre-deadline blockbuster, never asked to be traded out of Colorado, according to Troy Renck of the Denver Post, although he wanted a resolution on the situation, and he didn't mind having the opportunity to waive his 2014 option with the commencement of the trade (via Twitter).
• The Giants activated Mark DeRosa from the 60-day disabled list today, but they haven't announced a corresponding 40-man roster move yet and "are being evasive about it," according to Andrew Baggarly of the San Jose Mercury News (via Twitter). Baggarly speculates that the Lads could activate Pat Burrell from the 15-day DL and release him.
• The Red Sox were willing to discuss a trade with the Cardinals involving center fielders Jacoby Ellsbury and Colby Rasmus in 2010, according to Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (via Twitter), but the talks never gained traction. That would have been a heck of a trade. Rasmus, of course, was traded by St. Louis to the Blue Jays prior to last month's trade deadline.
• The Indians were very close to drafting Ellsbury at No. 14 overall in the 2005 draft but instead opted for Trevor Crowe, according to Gordon Edes of ESPNBoston.com (via Twitter). So close, in fact, that team officials asked Ellsbury, a Native American, his feelings about the team's logo, the so-called Chief Wahoo. … Edes' sources didn't provide him with Ellsbury's response, though.

9:37pm: The Giants are expected to release Pat Burrell to create roster space for Carlos Beltran, according to CSNBayArea.com. San Francisco will option Brandon Belt to Triple-A to create space on the active roster for Beltran, who was acquired for pitching prospect Zack Wheeler earlier today.

Burrell, 34, re-signed in San Francisco for $1MM after a strong second half to the 2010 season helped carry the Giants to the World Series. Burrell hit .266/.364/.509 with 18 homers last year, but his production has fallen off in 2011. The former first overall pick has a .233/.342/.419 line with seven homers this season. If the Giants release him, he'll be available for a pro-rated portion of the MLB minimum, just as he was a year ago.

• Jon Heyman of SI.com suggests that there won't be much room for Pat Burrell and Aaron Rowand in San Francisco (Twitter link). Beltran, Nate Schierholtz, Andres Torres and Cody Ross figure to get most of the playing time in the Giants’ outfield. The Giants are expected to release Burrell to create space on the roster for Beltran.
• The Giants aren't discussing an extension for Beltran, according to Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle (on Twitter). The switch-hitter hits free agency after the season and cannot be offered arbitration.
• Some Giants people believe the Reds will deal Ramon Hernandez for a pitcher, according to Schulman (on Twitter).

• "There is discussion in the [Giants'] executive offices as to how long they can stay with [Miguel] Tejada and Pat Burrell," reports Bruce Jenkins of the San Francisco Chronicle.  Jose Reyes has been mentioned as a trade target for the Giants, though Brian Sabean denied his club's interest yesterday. 
• Thanks to Justin Smoak's emergence, the Mariners seem to have gotten the best of the three recent Cliff Lee trade packages, writes Larry Stone of the Seattle Times.
• If Mark Trumbo keeps hitting and Kendrys Morales is out of action for most of the season, Eric Denton of the LA Angels Insider blog notes that the Angels could face a tough choice this offseason.  Denton suggests the Halos could even non-tender Morales, but if they do choose to move the first baseman, surely you'd think the team could find a trade partner.
• We know the Diamondbacks have an interest in UCLA prospect Gerrit Cole with the third pick of the upcoming amateur draft, but Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic adds a couple of other interesting nuggets about the right-hander.  Arizona also has the seventh overall pick, but Piecoro notes that since that pick is unprotected, the D'Backs "almost certainly couldn’t risk drafting him" at that spot if they pass on him at #3.  Cole is represented by Scott Boras and could be a difficult signing.
• Cole was drafted 28th overall by the Yankees in the 2008 draft but he didn't sign.  Piecoro "got the sense from talking with other scouts and executives that there are still some people in the game harboring a grudge toward Cole" since Cole didn't let it be known that he wasn't interested in signing back in 2008.
• MLB.com's Corey Brock profiles A.J. Hinch, the former D'Backs manager who is now the Padres' vice president of professional scouting.
• Julio Borbon welcomes the center field competition of newly-signed Rangers prospect Leonys Martin, reports Richard Durrett of ESPNDallas.com.

Burrell, 34, hit .252/.348/.469 with 20 home runs in 437 plate appearances for the Rays and Giants this year.  He tallied over 600 innings in left field for San Francisco.  The return to the National League, and perhaps the chance to play defense again, resulted in a solid comeback.  Burrell isn't known for his glovework, but on the plus side he was the only free agent left fielder to hit 20 home runs in 2010.  His agents at Legacy Sports seemingly adhered to his wish to remain in San Francisco rather than shop around for the biggest contract.

Andrew Baggarly of the Mercury News was the first to report that a deal may have been struck between the two sides and Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle reported details on the deal (Twitter links).

Tim Dierkes contributed to this post.

• Even Cliff Lee’s representatives would be surprised if the left-hander received a seven-year offer like C.C. Sabathia did.
• The Rangers were in on Victor Martinez “big,” according to Rosenthal.
• The Rangers are talking to Vladimir Guerrero and showing interest in Paul Konerko. The White Sox offered the first baseman arbitration, so it will cost a top pick to sign him.
• The Dodgers showed serious interest in Aubrey Huff before he re-signed with the Giants, according to Rosenthal. 
• The Phillies discussed the idea of bringing Pat Burrell back to Philadelphia, but decided against it.
• Type B free agent Orlando Hudson almost certainly agreed in advance to reject the Twins’ offer of arbitration, Rosenthal says. The Twins agreed not to offer the second baseman arbitration if he was a Type A free agent, so Hudson may have agreed not to accept if he ended up a Type B.
• The Marlins have between $3-8MM to spend, depending on which one of Rosenthal’s sources you ask.
• Eric Hinske is close to deciding between the Braves and Brewers, who have both offered him contracts.

• Sabean said he got clearance to match an offer Huff received from another team in making a two-year, $22MM proposal.  You might think the Giants overpaid to retain Huff, but at least one other club was willing to offer him big money too.
• Pat Burrell has been informed by Sabean that the club will take care of other business before revisiting his situation.
• Talks with Juan Uribe are active but on a slower track.  Sabean feels Uribe will have multiple offers as a shortstop or third baseman in the weak infield market.  I expect Uribe to be offered arbitration today.
• The Giants had talks with a free agent shortstop from another club today, says Sabean.  I suppose that could mean Orlando Cabrera or Cesar Izturis; there's not much out there.  Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports tweets that the Giants are not expected to bid on Tsuyoshi Nishioka before today's 4pm central deadline.
• Sabean says he might have to move money around and may not be able to tender contracts to all eight of his arbitration eligible players.  The Giants have Andres Torres, Javier Lopez, Jonathan Sanchez, Ramon Ramirez, Mike Fontenot, Santiago Casilla, Cody Ross, and Chris Ray up for arbitration.  The non-tender deadline is December 2nd.