The Red Sox made a number of moves Monday to round out their big league coaching staff under interim manager Chad Tracy, two days after parting ways with manager Alex Cora and five coaches.
The club announced first-base coach/infield instructor José Flores will assume interim bench coach responsibilities, a role previously held by Ramón Vázquez. Minor League coordinator Pablo Cabrera will be promoted to take Flores’ place as Boston’s interim first-base coach and outfield instructor. Jack Simonetty, who opened the season as a hitting coach for the Rookie-Level Florida Complex League Red Sox, was named as an interim hitting assistant.
Flores, 55, began his coaching career in 2001 and has coached in the Major Leagues with the Phillies (first-base coach, 2018) and Orioles (third-base coach, 2019-20). He spent three seasons as Triple-A Worcester's bench coach from 2022-24 before joining the Red Sox staff in November 2024.
The 28-year-old Cabrera joined the Red Sox as a coach for Double-A Portland in 2023. Simonetty, 26, also joined the organization in 2023 as a video and technology associate for Worcester.
The Red Sox also promoted Double-A Portland manager Chad Epperson to serve as their interim third-base coach on Saturday in place of Kyle Hudson, per a report from Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com, while bringing up Triple-A Worcester hitting coach Collin Hetzler to serve on their Major League hitting staff after dismissing hitting coach Peter Fatse, assistant hitting coach Dillon Lawson and hitting strategy coach Joe Cronin.
According to Cotillo's report, Boston is planning to have both Hetzler and John Soteropulos, who was an assistant hitting coach on Cora’s staff, assume “hitting coach” titles, though the team hasn't confirmed that decision, either.
Pitching coach Andrew Bailey, bullpen coach Chris Holt and catching coach Parker Guinn are all expected to retain their roles.