O's finalize 2024 coaching staff under Hyde

January 12th, 2024

BALTIMORE -- The Orioles filled the largest hole on their MLB coaching staff in late November, when they hired Drew French as pitching coach. Now, the rest of the group has been finalized for the upcoming season.

On Friday, Baltimore announced its 2024 big league coaching staff, which will continue to serve under manager Brandon Hyde, who is entering his sixth season at the helm. In addition to the hiring of French, the O’s have promoted Mitch Plassmeyer to assistant pitching coach and Grant Anders to the role of Major League development coach.

The following members of the staff are set to return: offensive strategy coach Cody Asche, co-hitting coaches Matt Borgschulte and Ryan Fuller, field coordinator/catching instructor Tim Cossins, bench coach Fredi González, Major League coach José Hernández, pitching strategy coach Ryan Klimek, third-base coach Tony Mansolino and first-base coach Anthony Sanders.

French has taken over as pitching coach, a role previously held by Chris Holt, who will remain the Orioles’ director of pitching. Holt, who had been the pitching coach since November 2020, will continue to work with pitchers throughout the organization.

Baltimore needed a new assistant pitching coach after parting ways with Darren Holmes following the 2023 season. Plassmeyer, 28, had been serving as Minor League pitching coordinator since May of ‘22.

Prior to joining the Orioles, Plassmeyer was on staff at the University of Missouri-Columbia, where he had stints as pitching coach (2022) and director of player development (2021-22). He pitched three seasons at Bradley University, graduating in ‘19.

Anders, 27, had been a Major League player development analyst for Baltimore since December 2021. Before that, he served as a development coach for Double-A Bowie, a role he assumed in November of ‘19. Anders is a graduate of Radford University, where he also served as director of player development from 2015-18.

The Orioles are coming off a 2023 season in which they won their first American League East title since ‘14, finishing with an AL-best record of 101-61. Their coaches will look to lead them to more success in ‘24, when they’ll aim for a deeper postseason run after getting swept by the Rangers in the AL Division Series last year.