CHICAGO – The Chicago White Sox have announced the hirings of Bobby Hearn as assistant pitching coach, José Leger (“le-HAIR”) as first base/outfield coach, Chris Denorfia as Major League field coordinator, Bennett Markinson as bullpen catcher and Tony Medina as a Major League assistant, completing the Major League staff for the 2026 season under second-year manager Will Venable:
- Bench Coach: Walker McKinven
- Pitching Coach: Zach Bove
- Assistant Pitching Coach: Bobby Hearn
- Bullpen Coach: Matt Wise
- Hitting Coach: Derek Shomon
- Assistant Hitting Coach: Joel McKeithan
- First Base/Outfield Coach: José Leger
- Third Base/Infield Coach: Justin Jirschele
- Major League Field Coordinator: Chris Denorfia
- Bullpen Catcher: Bennett Markinson
- Bullpen Catcher: Luis Sierra
- Major League Assistant: Tony Medina
Hearn, 29, spent the last two seasons with the Minnesota Twins, serving as assistant pitching coordinator in 2025 and complex pitching coordinator in 2024 in his second stint with the organization. He worked at Davidson College in 2023 as a pitching coach and recruiting coordinator for pitching.
Hearn began his coaching career with the Twins as a Florida Complex League pitching coach from 2021-22. He joined Class A Cedar Rapids for the second half of the 2022 season and served on the coaching staff for the Glendale Desert Dogs in the 2022 Arizona Fall League.
Hearn pitched collegiately at Wake Forest University from 2016-20, where he served as team captain his final two seasons and was teammates as a senior with right-handed pitcher Shane Smith, who was an American League All-Star as a rookie with the White Sox in 2025. He graduated cum laude with a degree in finance earned his master’s degree in accountancy.
Leger, 43, currently is managing Gigantes del Cibao in the Dominican Winter League. He spent the last eight seasons in the St. Louis Cardinals organization, serving as Assistant Field and Baserunning Coordinator in 2025, Class AA Springfield manager from 2021-24 and Latin American Field and Academy Development Coordinator at the Dominican complex from 2018-20. Leger guided Springfield to Texas League playoff berths in both 2023 and 2024.
Prior to joining the Cardinals, Leger managed at three levels in the New York Mets organization from 2010-17. He was named the 2015 South Atlantic League Manager of the Year after leading Class A Savannah to an 84-53 record. In 12 seasons as a minor-league manager, Leger has compiled a 675-666 (.503) record with five postseason appearances.
Leger, a native of Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, was signed by Minnesota as a non-drafted free agent in July 2004 after playing collegiately at Middle Georgia College (2001-02) and Georgia College and State University (2003-04).
Denorfia, 45, spent the last five seasons in the Colorado Rockies organization, serving as the organization’s outfield and baserunning coordinator from 2024-25 after managing Class AA Hartford from 2021-23. He was scheduled to manage Hartford in 2020 before the cancellation of the minor-league season. After retiring as a player in 2017, Denorfia spent the 2018 season as a special assistant to the president/general manager before joining the Cubs major league staff in 2019 as the quality assurance coach.
A former outfielder, Denorfia played 10 seasons in the major leagues, hitting .272/.330/.392 (587-2,162) with 103 doubles, 41 home runs, 196 RBI and 289 runs scored in 808 games with Cincinnati (2005-06), Oakland (2007-08), San Diego (2010-14), Seattle (2014) and Cubs (2015). He and White Sox manager Will Venable were teammates with the Padres from 2010-14. Denorfia was chosen as San Diego’s Heart and Hustle Award winner in 2013, when he also tied for fifth in MLB with 13 outfield assists.
Markinson, who turns 23 on December 30, joins the White Sox following a four-year career at Northwestern University (2022-25). He started all 52 games for the Wildcats in 2025, including 48 at catcher. As a junior in 2024, he led Northwestern with a .337 batting average, .408 on-base percentage and .905 OPS.
Markinson signed with the Philadelphia Phillies as a non-drafted free agent but did not appear in a game before announcing his retirement on November 12. A native of Tarzana, Calif., Markinson attended high school at Harvard-Westlake in Los Angeles.
Medina, 32, spent the last four seasons with the Schaumburg Boomers, serving as the baseball analytics coordinator from 2023-25 and hitting coach in 2022.
The White Sox announced Zach Bove as the new pitching coach on November 4 and Derek Shomon as the new hitting coach on November 7. Bench coach Walker McKinven (second season), third base/infield coach Justin Jirschele (second season), assistant hitting coach Joel McKeithan (second season), bullpen coach Matt Wise (third season) and bullpen catcher Luis Sierra (11th season) will return to their respective positions in 2026.