DETROIT -- Longtime catcher Martin Maldonado, who played for a handful of legendary managers during his 14-year Major League career, is following the path into the coaching profession. Maldonado is joining the Tigers as a quality control coach under A.J. Hinch, for whom he played in Houston, sources told MLB.com on Friday.
The Tigers have not announced any coaching changes since season’s end. The Athletic was the first to report Maldonado’s hiring.
Maldonado’s reunion with Hinch revives a working relationship that thrived nearly a decade ago. The Astros acquired Maldonado at the 2018 Trade Deadline from the Angels -- with whom he won a Gold Glove in 2017 -- to provide a defensive-minded, game-calling backstop for a star-studded pitching staff led by Justin Verlander and Gerrit Cole. Maldonado made a big impression in his first stint with a postseason team, enough that the Astros traded for him again the following Trade Deadline after he’d left as a free agent.
Maldonado remained with the Astros through the 2023 season, winning a World Series under Dusty Baker in 2022. He retired in 2025 after 1,230 career games between the Astros, Angels, Brewers, Cubs, Padres, Royals and White Sox. His last game action was in the 2026 World Baseball Classic for Puerto Rico, which lost in the quarterfinals to Italy.
Maldonado said upon retirement that he was looking forward to spending time with family, but made it clear he was interested in coaching. The 40-year-old spent this past season with the Braves as a special assistant.
”My goal is to manage in the future,” Maldonado told MLB.com's Brian McTaggart. “You’ve got to take it step by step.”
Coaching under Hinch is the next step, following a path taken by current Pirates manager Don Kelly, former Astros manager Joe Espada and former Red Sox manager Alex Cora. As quality control coach, Maldonado fills a position that had been vacant on the Tigers staff since Billy Boyer took over as third-base coach for Joey Cora this past summer.
The Tigers also have openings at first-base coach and assistant pitching coach after parting ways with Anthony Sanders and Juan Nieves, per sources.