SOURCES: WILLIAMS TO JOIN STAFF AS 3B COACH
Bob Melvin is on the verge of adding some big-time cachet to his Padres coaching staff.
Matt Williams is expected to join the club as a third base/ infield coach, multiple sources confirmed for the Union-Tribune.
The 56-year-old Williams was a five-time All-Star and a four-time Gold Glove winner who mashed 378 homers over a 17-year career with the Giants (1987-1996), Indians (1997) and Diamondbacks (1998-2003). He won a World Series in 2001 in Arizona, where his coaching career began as a first base coach in 2010.
Williams managed the Nationals from 2014-2015, winning NL Manager of the Year after guiding Washington to 96 wins and the NL East title his first season. He was fired after a disappointing 2015 campaign (83-79) in which the Nationals, World Series favorites, missed the playoffs altogether.
Williams was on Melvin’s staff in Oakland as a third base coach from 2018-19 before managing the Kia Tigers in Korea to a 131-146 record the last two years.
In San Diego, Williams is expected to join a staff that includes Ryan Christenson as bench coach (the same role he served under Melvin in Oakland), Ruben Niebla as pitching coach and Mike Brdar as hitting coach.
The staff is also expected to include former Pirates catcher Francisco Cervelli as a catching instructor, Ben
Fritz returning as a bullpen coach and Ryan Flaherty as an offensive coordinator.
First base coach is to be determined but could be a relative newcomer to the big leagues.
The Padres have not formally announced any of these hirings.
Players added
The lockout isn’t keeping the Padres from adding intriguing bats on minor league deals.
Outfielder Nomar Mazara and infielder C.J. Hinojosa will receive minor league deals with invitations to big-league spring training, a source confirmed.
The 26-year-old Mazara was released by the Tigers in July after hitting .212/.276/.321 with three homers and 19 RBIs in 50 games.
Signed by the Rangers when A.J. Preller was scouting in that organization, Mazara finished fifth in AL Rookie of the Year voting in 2016 after hitting .266/.320/.419 with two homers and 64 RBIs in 145 games. He hit a total of 59 homers in three more seasons with the Rangers before going to the White Sox in 2020.
In San Diego, Mazara provides organizational outfield depth for a team that lost left fielder Tommy Pham and several minor league outfielders to free agency.
Hinojosa, 27, was drafted in the 11th round by the Giants in 2011. He spent 2019 in the Brewers organization, played independent ball in 2020 and spent 2021 at Houston’s Triple-A affiliate. There, Hinojosa hit .316/.351/.481 with a career-high 11 homers. He saw time at second base (34 games), shortstop (33 games) and third base (32 games).