With the World Series concluded and the off-season officially underway, the Red Sox announced a portion of their 2018 coaching staff Thursday, while leaving arguably the two most important positions unfilled for now.
"As soon as Alex (Cora) got hired, I asked him for his different thought processes as far as names were concerned,'' said president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski. "My way of handling a coaching staff has always been that I think the manager should hire the coaching staff and I retain veto power. The names (hired), except for one, came from Alex.
Ron Roenicke, who managed the Milwaukee Brewers for five seasons and served as the Los Angeles Angels third base coach the last two years, will serve as Cora’s bench coach. Roenicke once managed Cora in the Dodgers' minor league system for two seasons.
"We wanted Alex to have a veteran bench coach,'' said Dombrowski, "someone with whom he would feel comfortable. He gave me Ron's name as someone he would really like.''
Carlos Febles, who has managed in the Red Sox minor league system for the past seven years including the last two at Double A Portland, will be the third base coach.
Tom Goodwin, who had worked in the Red Sox minor league system from 2008-2011 before serving the last six seasons as the New York Mets first base coach, will be the Sox’ first base coach and outfield instructor. He’ll also serve as the team’s baserunning instructor.
"(Cora) thought he could be a difference maker,'' said Dombrowski.
Dana LeVangie, who has been a part of the organization for better than 25 years, will return as the bullpen coach and continues to serve as the catching coordinator and help with advance scouting.
The team has yet to name a hitting coach or pitching coach.
Current Los Angeles Dodgers assistant hitting coach Tim Hyers, who worked for the Red Sox for a number of years as a scout and minor league hitting instructor, is believed to be the front-runner for the hitting instructor’s position.
Dombrowski added that the remainder of the coaches from last year -- first base coach Ruben Amaro Jr., assistant hitting coach Victor Rodriguez and bench coach Gary DiSarcina - would not return.
"Without getting into specifics,'' Dombrowski offered, "almost everyone has a contract elsewhere. I think there's one that's not solidified and is still talking to clubs. One is close to solidifying a deal and someone else has accepted a deal somewhere else (but) it's not announced.''
BSJ Analysis:
- Roenicke is a smart addition to the staff. He's managed in the minor leagues, managed in the big leagues and been a major league coach for a long time. Cora has no prior managerial experience, so having someone who's made those decisions in-game as a sounding board is a good thing.
- Goodwin is regarded as a good baserunning instructor, and Dombrowski noted that, given the amount of outs the team made on the bases last year, this was a point of emphasis in hiring for this spot. That's somewhat misleading, however, since the reason the Sox led the league in unforced outs on the bases was a decision to be ultra-aggressive to compensate for the lack of power. It wasn't necessarily because the Red Sox have players with baserunning instincts. Said a source who worked with Goodwin in New York: "Tom's a good guy who was engaged (with the players) and did a good job.''
- Febles had no prior relationship with Cora, but the Sox wanted at least one member of the staff to be an internal promotion from the minor leagues. Febles has managed nearly every player on the major league roster who's come through the Boston organization and that familiarity will be helpful. Also, Febles played a big role in the development of Rafael Devers and as infield instructor, will resume his work with him at third base.
- LeVangie is one of the more underrated individuals in the Red Sox' system, having filled a variety of roles once his minor league playing career was over. Cora wanted him retained, having been someone he maintained a relationship with after he left Boston. LeVangie has earned the trust of the team's relievers and has contributed some important adjustments for a number of pitchers on the current staff. As the lone holdover from the last few years, he provides the Sox with some important continuity and institutional memory.