SARASOTA, Fla. -- If you’ve watched any Orioles Spring Training home games this year, you’ve likely seen new manager Craig Albernaz sitting in one of the four chairs positioned to the left of the first-base dugout on the warning track, with a protective net in front of them. Most of the time to Albernaz’s left is a young man with a mustache, a light beard and long, curly brown hair on the back of his head.
That’s Joe Singley, Baltimore’s new field coordinator and catching coach, and he’s only 28 years old. That’s right -- he’s 28, and not only is he a member of the O’s overhauled big league staff for 2026, but he’s an instrumental part of the club's entire operation this spring.
Because of the field coordinator part of Singley’s title, he has been tasked with building the Orioles’ daily Spring Training schedule, from workouts to drills to player obligations to anything else that needs to be accomplished during the day at the Ed Smith Stadium complex.
“Making sure everything goes well, goes as planned. Making sure we get enough work. Maneuvering the schedule to wherever fits the players’ needs,” Singley said of his responsibilities. “It’s an honor to do it at such a young age, especially for a franchise like this. But it’s just a giant Rubik’s Cube. You puzzle things around and make them all fit. You’ve got to make everyone’s request come true.”
If you’re not familiar with Singley, then you may be wondering how he got here already.
As a catcher at Indian River State College (2017-18) and Coastal Carolina University (2018-20), Singley never got into a game due to multiple injuries. However, his knowledge of the game -- particularly from a catching standpoint -- earned him a role as a student assistant at CCU.
From there, Singley’s rise was a fast one. He landed a job as the Reds’ assistant catching coach and bullpen catcher from 2022-24, then spent the ‘25 season as the Marlins’ catching coach and assistant director of catching.
Shortly after Albernaz was hired to be Baltimore’s manager this past October, he knew he wanted to bring the young Singley over to his staff.
“He’s the best catching coach out there, in my opinion, and that’s why he’s here and that’s why we were trying to get him,” Albernaz said. “The dude can coach. And to me, it doesn’t matter about age. Like, ‘Can you coach to get players better? Can you collaborate with other staff members, different departments?’ Joe checks all those boxes.”
That’s high praise, especially coming from somebody like Albernaz, a former Minor League catcher in the Rays’ system from 2006-13, who was widely lauded for his defensive skills behind the plate, especially when he came over to big league camp during Spring Training.
In Albernaz’s view, what makes Singley such a bright mind when it comes to catching?
“It’s the content,” Albernaz said. “All players are visual learners, so the way that he can talk, speak the language, and then also show the nuanced stuff on video or spreadsheets if guys like that and numbers. He has a variety of different ways to connect with guys, and he doesn’t shy away from work. I think that’s the biggest thing.
“Every player wants to be coached. It’s just finding that in and that way to get to them, and Joe has the ability to in a variety of different ways connect with players.”
From Singley’s standpoint, the job with the Orioles was too good to pass up.
“There’s a lot of potential here. There’s a lot of talent,” Singley said. “Adley Rutschman and [Samuel] Basallo are, in my opinion, two of the best catchers in the game, and the chance to be able to work with them, and work for Alby, is ultimately the reason why I jumped over here.”
Singley and Albernaz aren’t the only former catchers on the Orioles’ staff. There’s also bullpen coach Hank Conger as well as Robinson Chirinos, who was the bench coach last season and has since returned as a special assistant to baseball operations and player development.
They should all be valuable resources to Rutschman (who turned 28 last month), Basallo (21) and the other catchers in big league camp, many of whom aren’t much younger than Singley.
“I think it's really beneficial, especially for these two [Rutschman and Basallo], to have people pushing them in the right direction. Sometimes, you feel like you're doing a lot right, but sometimes, you need a little reminder that, 'Hey, this is where we can push the envelope and push the needle in this direction,'" said 27-year-old catcher Maverick Handley. "[Joe's] got a lot of knowledge. You can tell he's prepared, he's done his research. He really believes in what he teaches, makes it engaging, makes it fun."