The Red Sox have found their next hitting coach.
The team announced Wednesday that it has hired Greg Colbrunn to fill the vacancy. Colbrunn will be replacing Dave Magadan, who left Boston after six seasons to take the same job with Texas.
The former first baseman has spent the last six seasons with the Yankees’ Single-A affiliate, working as the hitting coach from 2007 to 2009 and 2011 to 2012. The 43-year-old also managed the team during the 2010 season.
After 13 seasons in the majors with the Diamondbacks, Marlins, Braves, Expos, Twins, Rockies and Mariners, Colbrunn finished with 98 home runs, 422 RBIs and a .289 batting average. He also won a World Series with the Diamondbacks in 2001.
“Greg’s success as a hitting coach and his experiences as a major league player make him a strong addition to the Red Sox coaching staff,” Red Sox manager John Farrell said in a statement.
Colbrunn beat out Red Sox minor league hitting coordinator Victor Rodriguez, Diamondbacks hitting coach Rick Schu and Braves assistant hitting coach Scott Fletcher for the position. One of the other three candidates, however, could be hired as an assistant hitting coach. Earlier in the offseason, Farrell and general manager Ben Cherington expressed an interest in hiring two hitting coaches for the 2013 season.
