NEWSLETTER
The Chicago Cubs announced the majority of Rick Renteria’s coaching staff last week – we’re still waiting on a first base coach – and the official release on the coaching staff includes some additional tidbits on each coach worth checking out.
You probably didn’t know much about third base coach Gary Jones, assistant hitting coach Mike Brumley, or quality assurance coach Jose Castro until now (I didn’t), so here’s a bit more:
Jones, 53, joins the Cubs as third base coach and infield coach after spending the last 11 years in the Padres organization, including the last seven as minor league infield coordinator. He has one year of major league experience as the first base coach for Oakland in 1998. Jones has 15 seasons of experience as a minor league manager, earning four minor league manager of the year awards. He originally signed with the Cubs as a non-drafted free agent in 1982 and appeared in 897 minor league games.
Brumley, 51, joins the Cubs as assistant hitting coach after spending the last four seasons as first base coach with the Seattle Mariners. A veteran of part of seven major league seasons, Brumley began his big league career with the Cubs in 1987 and later played for Seattle (1990), Boston (1991-92), Houston (1993, 1995) and Oakland (1994). Upon retiring, Brumley spent 13 seasons as a minor league manager, field coordinator and instructor from 1997-2009 before joining Seattle’s major league staff in 2010.
Castro, 55, joins the Cubs as quality assurance coach after spending the last 25 years as a minor league hitting coordinator or hitting coach in the Kansas City, Seattle, Florida, San Diego and Montreal organizations. He also served an interim stint as Seattle’s major league hitting coach in 2008.
You may also not have known much about staff assistant Mike Borzello, who became something of a star last year and is now the “catching and strategy” coach. Here’s more:
Borzello, 43, enters his third season with the Cubs with an expanded role of catching and strategy coach. Prior to joining Chicago, he spent four seasons (2008-11) with the Los Angeles Dodgers as their bullpen catcher, a stint that followed 12 years in the New York Yankees organization starting in 1996 (roles included bullpen catcher and batting practice pitcher). Overall, Borzello has 18 years of experience with three major league clubs.
Carrie Muskat also got a bit more from new hitting coach Bill Mueller, about whom you likely do know some things, at least as a player. He’s from the “I had to work for everything I got, so I have a good understanding of how to teach it” school of thought. There’s also more in there on some of the other coaches in Muskat’s piece. It’s a good read.
