Rockies Retain Several Coaches
The Rockies announced a few coaching decisions this week. Third base coach Andy Gonzalez and assistant hitting coach Jordan Pacheco will return in their prior roles. Ron Gideon, who previously served as first base and outfield coach, transitions to a newly-created role of assistant bench coach.
The decisions provide a small amount of continuity for a club that has otherwise overhauled quite a bit. The Rockies have been losing a lot in recent years, which prompted them to fire manager Bud Black in May. He was replaced by third base coach Warren Schaeffer on an interim basis. Gonzalez then moved from his assistant hitting coach role to Schaeffer’s previous gig as third base coach. Pacheco began the season as hitting coach for Triple-A Albuquerque but was brought up to the big league squad as an assistant hitting coach at that time.
Once the season was over, the club parted ways with general manager Bill Schmidt. With the vacuum of the top of the front office, everything else was on hold. The new front office leader would eventually have some say in whether or not Schaeffer would be back. The coaching decisions would also have to wait until there was clarity on the front office and managerial situations.
In early November, Paul DePodesta was hired as Colorado’s new front office leader, with the title of president of baseball operations. Later that month, the club announced that Schaeffer would indeed continue as skipper.
In the past two-plus weeks, Schaeffer has been filling out his staff with new faces. Alon Leichman will be the pitching coach, Gabe Ribas assistant pitching coach, Matt Buschmann bullpen coach, Brett Pill hitting coach and Jeff Pickler bench coach.
This week’s hirings mean that at least a few familiar faces are returning. However, as mentioned, Gonzalez and Pacheco both got their current titles in May as part of the shake-up when Black was fired. With Gideon now changing roles, it means each job has been rolled over in some way in the past eight months.
Gonzalez has been with the Rockies for 11 seasons, spending much of that time in the minors. He became assistant hitting coach with the big league club in the 2022 season. As mentioned, he changed roles before completing his fourth campaign with that title. He played in the majors from 2007 to 2009, with the White Sox, Cleveland and the Marlins.
Pacheco played in the majors from 2011 to 2016, spending a lot of that time with the Rockies, plus stints with the Diamondbacks and Reds. Colorado brought him aboard as a minor league hitting coach in 2022.
Gideon has been with the Rockies for 30 years, mostly in the minors, spending the last nine seasons on the big league staff. He had been the first base coach since the 2019 campaign. His role change means that the Rockies still have one vacancy. They will have to find a first base coach at some point before the season ramps up.
Photo courtesy of Allan Henry, Imagn Images
Rockies Hire Jordan Pacheco As Triple-A Hitting Coach
The Rockies have named former infielder/catcher Jordan Pacheco as the new hitting coach for their Triple-A affiliate in Albuquerque. Pacheco officially retired this past August, and will now move immediately into coaching following the end of his 14 seasons as a player.
Pacheco was a ninth-round pick for Colorado in the 2007 draft, and he spent most of his career in the Rockies organization, including 270 of his 377 big league games. His first full season was his most impressive, as Pacheco hit .309/.341/.421 over 505 plate appearances in 2012, earning a sixth-place finish in NL Rookie Of The Year voting.
Appearing in parts of six seasons from 2011-16, Pacheco hit .272/.310/.365 over 1149 PA with the Rockies, Diamondbacks, and Reds. Something of a unique type of utility player, Pacheco spent the majority of his time as a corner infielder but also significant action as a catcher, making him an interesting depth option on a big league bench.
Pacheco also spent time in the minors in the Braves, Twins, and Mariners organizations since 2016, but a return call to the big leagues never came. His minor league experience also included stints in the Mexican League and the independent Atlantic League, and Pacheco finished his career with a .998 OPS over 161 PA with the Atlantic League’s Lexington Legends in 2021.
After retiring, Pacheco quickly transitioned into a coaching role with the Grand Junction Rockies of the MLB-affiliated Pioneer League. Now moving into this notable role with the Triple-A Isotopes, Pacheco told MLB.com’s Thomas Harding that he is hoping to keep climbing the ladder in this next phase of his baseball career.
“I’m always a dreamer. I see myself doing things and I do see myself managing in the big leagues someday. But how I approach things and how I’ve always done it is I’m going to see where I’m at,” Pacheco said. “But I’m not going to stop having those dreams, because I think that’s going to make me a better hitting coach. It’s going to push me to learn as much as I can, and it’s going to push me to evolve with this game and help these guys become better.”
We at MLB Trade Rumors congratulate Pacheco on a fine career, and we wish him great success in his coaching endeavors.
Tony Cingrani, Jordan Pacheco Sign With Lexington Legends
The Lexington Legends of the independent Atlantic League announced that they have signed left-hander Tony Cingrani and infielder Jordan Pacheco.
A third-round selection of the Reds in the 2011 draft, Cingrani became a major leaguer a year later and immediately held his own in the majors. To this point, Cingrani has thrown 334 2/3 innings of 4.01 ERA/3.76 SIERA ball between 2012-18 with the Reds and Dodgers, who acquired him from Cincinnati at the 2017 trade deadline. Shoulder problems have hampered Cingrani, though, and he hasn’t pitched in the bigs in the past two-plus seasons.
Pacheco, 35, became a big leaguer when the Rockies used a ninth-round pick on him in 2007. The former catcher most recently appeared in MLB with the Reds in 2016 and has batted .272/.310/.365 in 1,149 PA at the game’s highest level.
Minor MLB Transactions: 6/21/19
Friday’s minor moves from around baseball…
- The Royals have signed infielder Chase d’Arnaud to a minor league deal, Jeffrey Flanagan of MLB.com tweets. D’Arnaud was last with the Rangers, who released him Tuesday. The 32-year-old opened 2019 with a .164/.275/.316 line in 178 plate appearances with Texas’ Triple-A affiliate. While the well-traveled d’Arnaud has primarily played at the Triple-A level as a professional, he has combined for 599 major league PA – 100 of which came with the Giants in 2018. He’s a .222/.273/.316 hitter in the bigs.
- The Mariners have inked infielder Jordan Pacheco to a minors pact, according to Triple-A Tacoma broadcaster Mike Curto. Pacheco saw action with the Rockies, Diamondbacks and Reds from 2011-16, but he has since made a few stops outside the majors – including Monclova of the Mexican League this season. The 33-year-old’s known for his defensive versatility, having lined up at catcher, first base, second, third and in the outfield in his MLB days. Pacheco hit .272/.310/.356 during that 1,149-PA span.
Minor MLB Transactions: 1/8/18
Here are the day’s minor moves from around the game…
- The Twins have signed utility man Jordan Pacheco to a minor league contract, per their Triple-A affiliate’s PR director, Nate Rowan (on Twitter). Initially a catcher by trade, Pacheco has broadened his skill set by logging more than 350 innings at each of third base, first base and second base in recent years, and he’s even chipped in 133 innings as a shortstop in the minors. Set to turn 32 later this month, Pacheco most recently played 42 games for the independent Long Island Ducks, hitting .273/.351/.420 in 42 games. Pacheco is a career .272/.310/.365 hitter in 1149 MLB plate appearances and a .272/.343/.388 hitter in parts of six Triple-A seasons. The Twins project to have a crowded bench as is, with Eduardo Escobar, Mitch Garver, Zack Granite and Robbie Grossman all currently projected for spots, but Pacheco can bring some versatile depth to the Rochester roster.
- Former MLB hurler A.J. Achter appears to be moving on from his playing days, as he has been announced as the new pitching coach at Eastern Michigan University. The 29-year-old, who was selected out of Michigan State in the 46th round of the 2010 draft, threw 62 total frames in the majors between 2014-16 with the Twins and Angels. Last year, Achter worked at the Double-A level with the Tigers. While he was never able to hold down a firm job at the game’s highest level, Achter thrived at Triple-A. In 190 innings there, he worked to a 2.79 ERA with 8.0 K/9 versus 3.1 BB/9. MLBTR wishes him the best of luck in his new line of work.
Braves To Sign Jordan Pacheco
The Braves have agreed to a minor league deal with catcher and utlityman Jordan Pacheco, according to Chris Cotillo of SB Nation (via Twitter). Pacheco had elected free agency after being outrighted by the Reds.
Atlanta could conceivably deploy Pacheco in any number of ways if and when he’s needed at the major league level. He has spent time behind the dish and at first, second, and third base. Of course, the 30-year-old has never been much of a threat at the plate, as he delivers a solid batting average but doesn’t draw many walks or deliver a lot of power.
On the year, Pacheco has a .157/.157/.235 slash over 51 plate appearances. His best season came in 2012 with the Rockies, when he hit .309/.341/.421 in 505 trips to the plate — though even then, that rated as below league average in terms of overall productivity once accounting for hitter-friendly Coors Field.
Reds Outright Jordan Pacheco, Who Elects Free Agency
The Reds have outrighted infielder/catcher Jordan Pacheco, per a club announcement. He declined an assignment after clearing waivers, instead electing free agency.
Pacheco’s roster spot was needed as the club executed a series of moves relating to their pitching staff. Veteran righty Alfredo Simon was placed on the 15-day DL, while Michael Lorenzen was activated from the 60-day DL.
[Related: Updated Reds Depth Chart]
Cincinnati wasn’t getting much from Pacheco, who is valued most for his unusual ability to play behind the dish as well as elsewhere in the infield. He wasn’t seeing action at catcher for Cincinnati, and over 51 plate appearances had recorded only eight hits without a single walk while going down 14 times via strikeout.
Pacheco has seen action in six MLB seasons, including this one. Through 1,149 plate appearances at the game’s highest level, he owns a .272/.310/.365 slash line.
Reds Waive Jake Cave
The Reds have placed outfielder Jake Cave on waivers, C. Trent Rosecrans of the Cincinnati Enquirer reports (via Twitter). As a Rule 5 pick, Cave will be offered back to the Yankees for $25K if another team doesn’t claim him. Any club that does claim Cave would have to keep him on its 25-man roster for the entire season or lose him to the Yankees.
Cave, 23, failed to impress during 56 Spring Training plate appearances for the Reds, compiling a .224/.309/.306 line that was appreciably worse than his career minor league slash of .285/.346/.391. The 2011 sixth-round pick spent nearly all of last season with Double-A Trenton and hit .278/.339/.359 in 132 games (seven with Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre) while swiping 17 bases on 20 attempts.
With Cave out of the picture in Cincinnati, the Reds’ bench come Opening Day is likely to consist of Jordan Pacheco, Scott Schebler and Jose Peraza, according to Rosecrans. Both Pacheco and Schebler have made strong cases for roster spots by thriving offensively this spring.
Reds Sign Jordan Pacheco To Minor League Deal
The Reds have signed catcher/infielder Jordan Pacheco to a minor league deal, MLB.com’s Mark Sheldon writes. Pacheco is a client of Beverly Hills Sports Council.
Pacheco, who turns 30 later this month, collected 78 plate appearances with the Diamondbacks last year, batting .242/.333/.333. They then designated him for assignment in June. That Pacheco did not catch on in Arizona despite the Diamondbacks’ issues at the catcher position at the beginning of last season is perhaps revealing. Pacheco has caught only four of the 34 runners who have attempted to steal on him in his career, and he’s been a below-average pitch framer in each of the past several seasons, so he doesn’t rate as a strong option behind the plate. Also, Pacheco’s career batting line of .278/.317/.372 is skewed by the fact that he’s spent almost half his career plate appearances in Coors Field.
Nonetheless, Pacheco possesses the ability to play multiple positions — in addition to catcher, he has bits of experience at first and third, and he also appeared in 33 games at second base in Triple-A in 2015. That versatility could give him a shot at a bench job, particularly for a Reds team that will be thin on veteran players this year.
Minor Moves: Pacheco, Coke, Young, White
We’ll track the days minor moves here:
- Catcher Jordan Pacheco has accepted his outright assignment with the Diamondbacks and will head to Triple-A Reno, Steve Gilbert of MLB.com tweets. The D-backs designated Pacheco for assignment last week after he hit .242/.333/.333 in 78 plate appearances.
- As expected, the Blue Jays have selected the contract of lefty Phil Coke, per a club announcement. Coke worked out of the Cubs bullpen earlier in the year, showing a big fastball and strong peripherals (8.1 K/9, 2.7 BB/9, 63.6% GB%) but struggling nonetheless to keep runs off the board. Toronto will hope that Coke can provide a useful southpaw component in the pen as the team assesses its options heading into trade season.
- The Braves have outrighted outfielder Eric Young Jr. to Triple-A, the club’s top affiliate announced on Twitter. Young, 30, has slashed just .169/.229/.273 in 85 big league plate appearances this year. After opening the season with a significant role, Young’s playing time dwindled to a trickle with his struggles and the resurgent play of late addition Cameron Maybin.
- Also headed to Gwinnett is righty Alex White, who has signed a minor league deal with the Braves just days after being released by the Astros. The 26-year-old, former top-100 prospect has not lived up to his pedigree in recent seasons. His stock had already fallen by the time Houston acquired him from the Rockies before the 2013 season, and Tommy John surgery caused him to miss that whole year. Since then, White has allowed over six earned runs per nine innings at the Triple-A level. This season, he struck out only 18 batters in 43 2/3 frames.