Royals call on new name to guide players one step from Majors

By Anne Rogers | January 26, 2026

KANSAS CITY -- Following Mike Jirschele’s retirement as the all-time winningest manager in the history of the Royals’ affiliate in Omaha, the club will turn to a new face to manage its Triple-A squad in 2026.

Patrick Osborn is well aware of the shoes he’s about to step into while managing the Storm Chasers this year, but the 44-year-old is ready for that challenge.

“History doesn’t bode well for the coach or manager who takes over for the legend, but I’m honored to follow him,” Osborn said last week. “He’s an icon in this organization, and he’s done so much for people individually and the Royals. I’m sure he and I will be in touch throughout the year. But [I’m] just very grateful.”

Since 1995, Omaha has had only six managers, marked by two longstanding figures -- Jirschele at the helm for three stints (1995-97, 2003-13 and 2023-25) and Brian Poldberg from 2014-21. Osborn marks a new era for the Storm Chasers, who have been the Triple-A affiliate of the Royals since their inception in 1969.

A fresh perspective can be a good thing, and Osborn certainly brings experience. He joined the Royals in 2025 as Omaha’s bench coach following five seasons with the Marlins and six with the Yankees. Those six seasons with the Yankees were spent managing five different levels from 2014-19. In the Marlins organization, Osborn was a pro scout (2020-21) and field coordinator (2021-24).

“Jirsch was a legendary coach, and you knew exactly what you were getting with him every day,” Royals general manager J.J. Picollo said. “That was advantageous for the organization. So moving on from somebody like that is a pretty big step. But we spent the last year with Patrick, and he’s a super positive guy. He understands the environment of Triple-A. He has a year of working with Jirsch, and a career of working with other people who have been in similar positions. So his experiences are really good.

“Over the last 12 months, I think he’s just developed a trust within the organization where we felt like he was the right guy and ready to handle that job.”

The Triple-A managerial job is not an easy one, given the amount of turnover that can happen throughout the season, with players going up to the big league club and back down. That turnover can bring frustration with players who would rather be in Kansas City.

Managing a game is different at the Triple-A level, too, with rehab stints, playing schedules the organization might want a player to stick to and limits to a player’s usage for some games if the Major League team thinks it might need that player in the coming days.

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“It can be a really tough environment,” Picollo said. “One of the things that really has stood out about Patrick is that there’s just a positive vibe around him. When you talk to him, there’s an energy, there’s an excitement. He’s very engaging in his conversations. There’s a sense of confidence that he has when you talk to him that makes you feel really good, and that’s the personality you need because there are going to be times in Triple-A, where it’s a really difficult job.

“When you build relationships with players the way Patrick has shown us that he can, it’s going to make that job and the transition much easier for him.”

Osborn signaled that relationships with players is one of the most important parts of his job, and having an open line of communication with them through the ups and downs of a season is crucial.

“That’s the most difficult part of this level -- many players have experienced the Major Leagues, some of them for quite a bit of time,” Osborn said. “And everyone wants to be in Kansas City or in the Major Leagues with any of the 30 organizations. There’s frustration from the start, and that’s OK.

“I think that anyone in that environment, when you’ve tasted the best, you want to be back with the best. … Accepting that from the players to a certain extent, but then also communicating to them that the longer they hold onto that frustration is ultimately going to impact their performance moving forward and lessen their chances of getting back to the big leagues.”

Osborn is familiar with players after a year as Omaha’s bench coach, and the rest of the Triple-A staff is returning:

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