BALTIMORE -- The Orioles finalized their 2025 coaching staff on Monday, headlined by the decision to hire one of their former players as a first-time coach.
Robinson Chirinos will serve as Baltimore’s bench coach under manager Brandon Hyde, returning to the organization where he played his final MLB season in 2022. The 40-year-old had an 11-year big league career as a catcher that began in ‘11, having also played for the Rays, Rangers, Astros, Mets and Cubs.
The O’s have also promoted Cody Asche from offensive strategy coach to hitting coach, Sherman Johnson from upper-level Minor League hitting coordinator to assistant hitting coach/upper-level hitting coordinator and Buck Britton from Triple-A Norfolk manager to Major League coach. Tommy Joseph was hired to serve as assistant hitting coach after spending one year in that same role for the Mariners.
Major League development coach Grant Anders, Major League field coordinator/catching instructor Tim Cossins, pitching coach Drew French, pitching strategy coach Ryan Klimek, third-base coach Tony Mansolino, assistant pitching coach Mitch Plassmeyer and first-base coach Anthony Sanders are all returning from last season’s staff.
Chirinos has never previously served as a coach at any level, but the Orioles thought highly of the Punto Fijo, Venezuela, native when he played for the club. Hyde also believed that the former backstop had a future in coaching.
That time has now come, with Chirinos returning to the place where he finished his playing career. He is taking the place of Fredi Gonzalez, who left the organization after five years on the big league staff (including three as bench coach).
Another notable addition is Britton, who spent the past three seasons as Triple-A Norfolk manager. The 38-year-old -- who is the older brother of former Orioles closer Zack Britton -- began his coaching career as the hitting coach at Single-A Delmarva in 2017, then spent six years as a Minor League manager in the O’s organization.
In 2023, Britton led Norfolk to both the International League title and the Triple-A National Championship, earning the honor of International League Manager of the Year. This will be his first coaching gig in the big leagues, where he’ll reunite with some of his former players, including shortstop Gunnar Henderson, infielder Jackson Holliday and more.
Baltimore finalized its hirings on the hitting side, each of which had been previously reported earlier this month. The O’s had holes to fill following the departures of co-hitting coaches Matt Borgschulte and Ryan Fuller. Borgschulte is now the Twins’ hitting coach, while Fuller was hired to be the White Sox director of hitting.
Asche, Joseph and Johnson will now work together to get the most out of Orioles hitters. It’s the first time the 34-year-old Asche will be a hitting coach after spending the past three years in various roles within the organization -- upper-level Minor League hitting coordinator in 2022, then offensive strategy coach in ‘23 and ‘24.
The 33-year-old Joseph’s one season as Mariners assistant hitting coach marked his professional coaching debut. Johnson also doesn’t have a ton of experience, as the 34-year-old was hired by Baltimore to serve as the Triple-A Norfolk hitting coach in 2023.
The Orioles will be looking to reach the postseason for a third straight year in 2025, after going 101-61 and winning the American League East in ‘23 and then finishing 91-71 to secure the top AL Wild Card berth in ‘24. They’ll aim for a deeper October run after going 0-5 in playoff games over the past two seasons.