BALTIMORE -- The Orioles’ 2026 coaching staff could look quite a bit different under new manager Craig Albernaz, as at least two familiar faces won’t be returning.
Sherman Johnson, Baltimore’s assistant hitting coach and Minor League upper-level hitting coordinator, is leaving to join the White Sox as a Minor League hitting coordinator, according to multiple sources. Neither club has announced the news.
Tommy Joseph, another Orioles assistant hitting coach, will also not return to the team, according to a source. The news has not been announced by the club.
Johnson, 35, began his coaching career in 2023, when he was hired by the Orioles to serve as Triple-A Norfolk’s hitting coach. He was promoted to Minor League upper-level hitting coordinator in ‘24.
In 2025, Johnson joined the Orioles’ big league club, serving as an assistant hitting coach underneath Cody Asche and alongside Joseph, who was also new to the staff. However, Baltimore didn’t play up to its lofty expectations, going 75-87 and finishing last in the American League East.
Joseph, 34, was the Mariners’ assistant hitting coach in 2024. The Phoenix native played 249 games for the Phillies over two seasons (‘16-17).
A Tampa, Fla., native, Johnson is a former infielder who played 10 games for the Angels in 2018. Multiple teams expressed interest in Johnson for various roles this month, per a source.
In Chicago, Johnson will be reunited with Ryan Fuller, who became the White Sox director of hitting last offseason after spending the previous three seasons as a big league hitting coach for the Orioles. Fuller had been in Baltimore’s organization since prior to the 2020 campaign.
The White Sox farm system dropped in MLB Pipeline’s rankings this past season, but that was largely due to multiple top prospects (including Colson Montgomery, Kyle Teel and Edgar Quero) reaching the Majors. Johnson will now look to help develop the next crop of hitters to come through Chicago’s Minor League levels.
It is not yet known which other coaches might not return to Baltimore. But with Albernaz now in place as the manager after being hired on Monday, it wouldn’t be surprising to see more changes coming to the big league staff.