PHOENIX -- The D-backs have hired Darnell Coles as their hitting coach, replacing Dave Magadan.
Coles spent the previous four seasons as hitting coach for the Brewers, who came within one game of reaching the World Series this season. He elected not to return to Milwaukee following the season, telling the organization that he was ready to seek a new challenge elsewhere.
"I felt like there was an immediate connection when sitting down with him," D-backs manager Torey Lovullo said of Coles. "The things you hear about him, the work ethic everybody talked about, the results that his hitters had, spoke for themselves. It was that connection and his ability to communicate, his ability to articulate what he was trying to say and then the process that he follows that really, really stood out. You guys know that I'm built on communication, developing relationships, building trust and showing care. He checked all those boxes once we sat down."
Under Coles' tutelage, the Brewers were seventh in the National League in runs scored this year with 754, and their OPS of .747 ranked fourth.
"I just thought it was time to make a change," Coles said of his decision to leave the Brewers. "I wish nothing but the best for them in the future until they play against us. Watching [the D-backs] from afar, they've always been an organization that did things right. You loved the way they played the game. They're extremely talented from top to bottom. It seemed like it would be a perfect fit."
Assistant hitting coach Tim Laker will remain in his current position, as will hitting strategist Robert Van Scoyoc.
The 2018 season was the first where the D-backs used three hitting coaches, and Lovullo said things went well but could've been better.
"It was a little bit of a challenge," Lovullo said. "It was a new normal. We had not only one assistant hitting coach, but a third person involved that was a very important voice. I feel like it worked well enough, but I want to make it work perfectly. My vision, it's going to be a three-headed monster that's going to be attacking whatever they can to help the hitter get better on a daily basis. Communicating with one another so it's a very consistent message."
Coles has experience in that regard, working with not only an assistant hitting coach in Milwaukee, but also receiving analytics input from the front office there.
"I think with the new analytics portion of it, I embrace all of it, but my thinking is that each individual guy has his own individual needs so it doesn't all work for everybody," Coles said. "You've got to figure out what works for each individual guy and put them in the best possible position to be successful."
Coles played parts of 14 seasons in the Major Leagues with eight teams and also had a two-year stint in Japan. He was a non-roster invitee to Spring Training in 1998 with the D-backs, but did not make the team.