The Houston Astros announced today that manager Joe Espada will not return for the 2027 season.
I think this was expected, given that the Astros granted the Seattle Mariners permission to interview Espada for Seattle’s vacant managerial job. The interesting thing, though, is that a number of coaches — pitching coach Josh Miller, hitting coach Victor Rodriguez, first base coach Dave Clark, major league field coordinator Jason Bell, and bullpen catcher Javier Bracamonte will reportedly return for the 2027
season.
The Astros are not bringing back assistant hitting caoch Anthony Iapoce, assistant pitching coach Ethan Katz, third base coach Tony Perezchica, game planning coach Tommy Kawamura and catching instructor Tim Cossins. If Iapoce’s name sounds familiar, he was the Rangers’ hitting coach under Jeff Banister from 2016-18.
This is kind of weird. The Astros do not have a manager or general manager at this point, and in the normal course of things, you’d expect the team to hire a general manager, who would hire a manager, who would then assemble a coaching staff. As it is, the incoming general manager and the incoming manager will apparently be inheriting coaches that are already in place and that they will be expected to work with.
I have not seen anything as of yet in regards to who the Astros may be planning on interviewing for either position. Or at least I don’t remember seeing anything about that. It is possible I saw something about it and then forgot, because there’s a lotta ins, a lotta outs, a lotta what-have-yous. A lotta strands in ol’ Duder’s head.
