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Victor Rodriguez

Padres Finalize Coaching Staff

By Anthony Franco | December 6, 2024 at 11:01pm CDT

The Padres announced their 2025 coaching staff on Friday evening. The most notable development is that Brian Esposito has been named bench coach. San Diego operated without a bench coach during Mike Shildt’s first year at the helm.

Esposito, 45, had already taken some of the traditional bench coach responsibilities. His prior title had been game strategy assistant. He’ll continue to work as one of Shildt’s top lieutenants. A former catcher who appeared in three MLB games amidst a 13-year professional playing career, Esposito has worked in the San Diego organization for the past three years.

The rest of the staff is as follows: pitching coach Ruben Niebla, hitting coach Victor Rodriguez, third base coach/infield instructor Tim Leiper, first base coach/outfield instructor David Macias, assistant hitting coaches Pat O’Sullivan and Mike McCoy, game planning assistant Peter Summerville, bullpen catcher Heberto Andrade, and coaching assistant Morgan Burkhart. Niebla, one of the game’s most respected pitching voices, inked a multi-year extension last month.

Aside from Esposito’s title change, there’s only one adjustment. Former field coordinator Ryan Barba is no longer on the coaching staff. AJ Cassavell of MLB.com writes that Barba is expected to remain with the organization in the player development department.

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San Diego Padres Ben Fritz Brian Esposito Ruben Niebla Victor Rodriguez

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Padres To Hire Victor Rodriguez As Hitting Coach

By Nick Deeds | December 22, 2023 at 7:07pm CDT

The Padres are hiring Victor Rodriguez as hitting coach, according to a report from independent journalist Francys Romero.

Rodriguez, 61, had a 19 year professional career as an infielder that included two brief cups of coffee at the major league level; one in 1984 at the age of 22 with the Orioles, and one in 1987 as a 27-year-old with the Twins. While he received just 28 plate appearances at the big league level, he hit quite well in those limited opportunities with a career .429/.429/.607 slash line in the majors. Rodriguez retired from professional play in 1995 and began coaching at the minor league level the following season.

After more than three decades in the minor leagues as a player and a coach, Rodriguez joined the Red Sox coaching staff as an assistant hitting coach in 2013. After winning the World Series with Boston in his first year on the job, Rodriguez spent four more seasons with the Red Sox in that same role before departing for Cleveland following the 2018 season to replace current Royals manager Matt Quatraro as the club’s assistant hitting coach. Rodriguez has been in Cleveland ever since, but after six years he’ll now depart the Guardians for San Diego. Rodriguez will join the coaching staff of new Padres manager Mike Shildt, who took the role last month after former manager Bob Melvin was allowed to depart to take a managerial gig in San Francisco.

Little has been made public about Shildt’s coaching staff since. Bench coach Ryan Flaherty has since departed to join Craig Counsell’s coaching staff on the north side of Chicago, while pitching coach Ruben Niebla and bullpen coach Ben Fritz are expected to remain in San Diego. Martinez serves as something of a replacement for Flaherty, who served as the club’s offensive coordinator in addition to his duties as bench coach last year. Per Jeff Sanders of the San Diego Union Tribune, Martinez will be joined on the hitting staff by assistant hitting coaches Oscar Bernard and Scott Coolbaugh, both of whom are expected to return to San Diego under Shildt in 2024 alongside Niebla and Fritz. Presumably, the remainder of Shildt’s coaching staff, including the bench coach role, will come into focus over the coming weeks as the Padres gear up for Spring Training two months from now.

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San Diego Padres Victor Rodriguez

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