A's Name Darren Bush Hitting Coach
Scott Emerson and Marcus Jensen Also Added to Major League Staff
OAKLAND, Calif. - The Oakland A's promoted Darren Bush to hitting coach, the club announced today. The A's also named Scott Emerson as bullpen coach and Marcus Jensen as assistant hitting/catching coach on Bob Melvin's coaching staff.
Bush served as the A's bullpen coach the past two seasons, his first assignment on a Major League coaching staff. The 2015 season will mark his 11th in the A's organization, which includes two seasons as a minor league hitting coaching and six seasons as a manager. Bush compiled a 462-386 (.545) record as a manager after serving as hitting coach at Single-A Stockton in 2005 and 2006.
Emerson earns his first Major League coaching assignment after spending the last two seasons as the A's minor league roving pitching instructor. Prior to that, he served 10 seasons as a pitching coach in the A's farm system, including stops with Modesto (2003-04), Stockton (2005-06), Midland (2007-11) and Sacramento (2012). The 42-year-old Emerson was drafted by Baltimore in the 40th round of the 1991 June draft and spent parts of four seasons in the Orioles farm system before being traded to Boston during the 1995 campaign. He began his coaching career with three seasons as a pitching coach in the Pittsburgh organization (2000-02).
Jensen also joins his first big league coaching staff after serving as the A's minor league roving hitting instructor in 2014. He joined the A's organization in 2007 as hitting coach for the A's affiliate in the Arizona Rookie League. The 41-year-old Jensen served two years in that capacity before managing the club for five seasons from 2009-13. A former catcher, Jensen was drafted by San Francisco as a supplemental pick following the first round of the 1990 June draft before making his Major League debut with the Giants in 1996. He was a .184 career hitter with six home runs and 29 RBI in 145 games in seven seasons with seven different teams including San Francisco (1996-97), Detroit (1997), Milwaukee (1998, 2002), St. Louis (1999), Minnesota (2000), Boston (2001) and Texas (2001)
Pitching coach Curt Young, third base coach Mike Gallego and first base coach Tye Waller will return in their same capacities in 2015. They join new bench coach Mike Aldrete to complete the A's 2015 Major League coaching staff.