The Baltimore Orioles are making a major change to the on-field coaching staff for the 2024 season.
The American League East champions will have a new on-field pitching coach. Chris Holt is going to a solely overarching role, something he had done while also being the major league pitching coach.
MASN had the news:
According to a source, Chris Holt won’t serve as pitching coach in 2024 but maintains his duties as director of pitching, a title pinned to him prior to the pandemic 2020 season.
The latest switch enables Holt to concentrate fully on supervising the rest of the organization in the quest to develop more pitching, leveraging his skill set and experience. He retains access to and authority over the minor league pitchers while also able to work directly with the major league staff.
Holt has worked with the Orioles since the 2019 season. He had previously spent time with the Houston Astros organization.
It doesn't seem like Holt is being replaced for performance reasons. The O's had the seventh-lowest ERA in the majors at 3.89. The bullpen was even better, anchored by All-Star closer Felix Bautista and elite set-up man Yennier Cano.
Under Holt's leadership, Dean Kremer and Kyle Bradish took great strides, becoming integral parts of the rotation.
There is no word yet on how the O's will handle the pitching coach duties yet. That's something that manager Brandon Hyde and the organization will have to determine over the course of the offseason.
The Orioles won an American League-best 101 games this year but were knocked out in the ALDS by the Texas Rangers.
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