With less than a month before spring training opens, the Padres have set their player development and minor league coaching staffs for the upcoming season.
While the system remains relatively stable, one major change comes as Rob Marcello, the director of pitching development since the 2022 season, departed the organization this month. A well-respected thought leader who has melded biomechanics and high-performance approaches with strong relationship skills, Marcello received credit for systematic changes in the organization.
With his departure, James Keller, who has served as a special advisor to General Manager A.J. Preller since 2019 and previously worked as a scout in the Rangers system, will step into a hybrid pitching coordinator role for the year.
Much of the rest of the development leadership remains the same with Ryley Westman at the helm and Mike Daly remaining as his assistant. Daly, who took on the additional role of managing Fort Wayne last year, returns to just one job this year. Long-time coach and advisor Vinny Lopez has been promoted to Director of Instruction, though his portfolio of defense and baserunning remains largely unchanged.
“We feel our group is a very strong one,” said Daly. “They’re very curious, they love the players, great work ethic, collaboration and camaraderie.”
Pete Zamora will return to manage at Triple-A. (Photo: Jorge Salgado)
At the affiliates, Pete Zamora and Luke Montz return as managers in El Paso and San Antonio, respectively. Lukas Ray, who spent last year managing in Lake Elsinore, moves up to Fort Wayne and former big-league pitcher Brian Burres, who joined the organization as a pitching coach last year, will become the Storm manager. Jhonaldo Pozo, who has been a bench coach in the organization and caught in the system from 2007-12, will get his first crack at managing in the Arizona Complex League.
Pitching coaches Scott Mitchell and Jimmy Jones (El Paso), Jeff Andrews (San Antonio), Thomas Eshelman (Fort Wayne), and Leo Rosales (ACL) all return to their roles from last year. Yorman Bazardo, who previously coached in the Dominican Summer League, will join the Storm staff and Slam Diego legend Daniel Camarena, whose pitching career came to an end last season, will step in alongside Rosales in the desert this summer.
Raul Padron (El Paso) and Nolan Early (ACL) are the only hitting coaches returning to the same level this year. Eric Del Prado (San Antonio), Yunir Garcia (Fort Wayne), and Jerry Downs (Lake Elsinore), all retain hitting coach roles, but at new levels. Long-time Padres farmhand Ruddy Giron will join Early in Peoria after coaching in the DSL last year.
The coaching staffs should benefit from the year Daly spent in uniform, with a team day-to-day.
“For me, it was very educational,” said Daly. “I have a greater appreciation – I already had appreciation, but now it’s greater – for what coaches do, a deeper appreciation of what the staff is doing.
“I think, understanding the perspective and what it’s like walking in the shoes every day… just knowing how to balance what the conversations with a player look like in his process, where a player is in his season. What’s going to be great for me is, I hope, being able to ask better questions.”
Kevin Plawecki has stepped into a coaching role. (Photo: Jorge Salgado)
As previously reported by Dennis Lin at The Athletic, long-time big-leaguer Matt Adams is joining the organization as a bench coach in El Paso. System veterans Miguel Del Castillo (San Antonio), Luis Mendez (Fort Wayne), Greg Starbuck (Lake Elsinore), and Brian Betencourth and Jed Morris (ACL) will hold down that role at other levels.
Form big-league catcher Kevin Plawecki, who has played in El Paso for portions of each of the last two seasons, has joined the player development as an instructor and will work out of Peoria.
