Hunter Mense is leaving the Blue Jays to become the new hitting coach of the Giants, Toronto general manager Ross Atkins confirmed at the GM Meetings in Las Vegas on Wednesday.
Mense, 41, had served as an assistant hitting coach for the Blue Jays since 2022 and has deep ties to the new Giants manager and fellow University of Missouri alum Tony Vitello. Mense played outfield at Mizzou from 2004-06 and was coached by Vitello, who worked as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator at his alma mater from 2003-10.
A 17th-round Draft pick of the Marlins in 2006, Mense played in the Minors for five seasons, climbing as high as Triple-A in 2010. After his playing career ended, Mense returned to Missouri to finish his degree and begin his coaching career.
A native of Liberty, Mo., Mense spent six seasons working as an assistant coach at Missouri and completed a Master’s degree in Sports Psychology in 2016. He joined the Padres as a hitting coach for Single-A Tri-City in 2017 and served as a Minor League hitting coordinator for the Blue Jays from 2019-22 before being elevated to the Major League staff.
“Hunter’s been awesome,” Atkins said Wednesday. “He’s exceptionally disciplined and very bright. He brought those attributes into our process and connected well with our players and made a big difference for us over the years.”
Mense focused on swing mechanics and drill design in Toronto, where he worked under hitting coach David Popkins. The Blue Jays led the Majors with a .265 batting average and ranked third with a .760 OPS in 2025, when they rode their contact-oriented offense to the American League pennant.
Mense is expected to replace Pat Burrell, who will remain in the organization but will not return as San Francisco’s hitting coach. Oscar Bernard will stay on as an assistant hitting coach, but the Giants could still add another hitting instructor to replace Damon Minor, who was not retained on the big league staff.
The Athletic was the first to report that Mense was joining the Giants.
MLB.com’s Martin Gallegos contributed reporting from Las Vegas.