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Detroit Tigers coach Alfredo Amézaga, others in organization won't return in 2024
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- Detroit Tigers coach Alfredo Amézaga, others in organization won't return in 2024
First base coach Alfredo Amézaga will not return to the Detroit Tigers ' coaching staff in the 2024 season, according to several industry sources. He was a part of the coaching staff for about 13 months, beginning in September 2022.
While there could be further changes to manager A.J. Hinch's coaching staff, the core of the group — pitching and hitting coaches — is expected to stay intact.
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The Tigers were contacted but would not confirm any coaching staff changes.
Amézaga, 45, played nine MLB seasons and was Miguel Cabrera 's teammate with the Florida Marlins in 2006 and 2007. He began his coaching career with the Atlanta Braves in 2019, then joined the Tigers in 2022.
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Detroit Tigers first base coach Alfredo Amezaga (99) signals players during the second inning against the Atlanta Braves in Game 1 of a doubleheader at Comerica Park in Detroit on Wednesday, June 14, 2023.
Amézaga joined the Tigers' organization as the Triple-A Toledo first base coach, latched on with Hinch's coaching staff for the final month of the 2022 season and returned for the entire 2023 season. He coached first base and trained the infielders.
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Amézaga and Cabrera share a close relationship.
In April 2023, Amézaga was announced as the new manager of Tomateros de Culicán in the Mexican Pacific Winter League . The regular season in Mexico's winter league began in mid-October and runs through the end of December, with the postseason in January.
As for Amézaga's replacement, the Tigers have expressed interest in Double-A Erie manager Gabe Alvarez . It's unclear if Alvarez has already been interviewed for the job. The 49-year-old former MLB infielder managed the SeaWolves for the past two seasons.
He won the 2023 Eastern League championship and was named the 2023 Eastern League Manager of the Year.
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Alvarez, who previously served as an assistant coach at USC for 11 seasons, has worked with several notable players in the Tigers' organization, including Colt Keith, Jace Jung, Dillon Dingler, Wenceel Pérez, Justice Bigbie, Kerry Carpenter , Parker Meadows , Reese Olson , Brendan White, Sawyer Gipson-Long, Keider Montero, Ty Madden and Dylan Smith.
In 2013-14, Alvarez developed a relationship with Tigers vice president of development Ryan Garko on the recruiting trail at Pac-12 baseball programs. At the time, Alvarez was an assistant coach at USC and Garko was an assistant coach at Stanford.
"Gabe is a very smart, hard worker, and we knew what we were getting with him when he got here," Garko, whom the Tigers hired in September 2021, told the Erie Times-News about Alvarez in 2022 . "He's very good at developing relationships with the players, and they trust him. He buys into everything we're trying to do as an organization, and he's a great communicator with our staff."
The Tigers are expected to interview other candidates, aside from Alvarez, for the open position.
Erie SeaWolves owner Fernando Aguirre, left, and manager Gabe Alvarez hold the Eastern League Championship trophy after leading the Wolves to a 10-0 win, and series sweep, over the Binghamton Rumble Ponies at UPMC Park in Erie on Sept. 26, 2023.
Other changes, per multiple sources
• Assistant athletic trainer Matt Rankin , who spent 18 seasons with the organization, won't return to the Tigers. Rankin could be replaced by a member of the Arizona Diamondbacks ' organization, from which the Tigers hired Ryne Eubanks as their head athletic trainer in November 2022 .
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• Director of team travel Brian Britten won't return. He had worked for the Tigers since March 2000 in four different roles, including team travel since April 2013.
• Corey Tremble , the Tigers' minor-league medical and rehab coordinator, resigned from his position after 16 seasons in the organization. He was named the Medical Coordinator of the Year by the Professional Baseball Athletic Trainers Society in both 2021 and 2022. Tremble previously interviewed for opportunities on the major-league staff but wasn't promoted.
• National crosschecker James Orr , from the amateur scouting department, did not have his contract renewed. He worked closely with former Tigers general manager Al Avila, dating back to the late 1990s. Darold Brown , an area scout in northern California, won't return.
• Francisco Rivas , the minor-league strength and conditioning coordinator, won't return to the organization. Ramón Santiago , a minor-league infield coordinator, did not have his contract renewed. Florida Complex League manager Mike Alvarez , who joined the Tigers in 2017, won't return for the 2024 season.
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• The Tigers hired Chip Lawrence , who finished runner-up to Mark Conner for the scouting director job in October 2022 , as a special assistant to scouting and global crosschecker.
Contact Evan Petzold at epetzold@freepress.com or follow him @EvanPetzold .
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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Tigers first base coach Alfredo Amézaga won't return in 2024
