The Dodgers' coaching staff of 2011 is beginning to take shape, as new manager Don Mattingly now has his pitching coach and third base coach intact for next season. Rick Honeycutt will reprise his role as pitching coach per Ken Davidoff of Newsday, and Tim Wallach will likely be the third base coach after losing out on the Miwaukee Brewers' managerial role.
Honeycutt is the longest tenured Dodger coach in uniform, as he will enter his sixth season as Dodger pitching coach. He joined the Dodger organization as a minor league pitching consultant in 2001, and was minor league pitching coordinator from 2002 to 2005 before becoming pitching coach in 2006. Honeycutt pitched for the Dodgers from 1983 to 1987, going 33-45 with a 3.58 ERA and 100 ERA+.
Wallach was the Dodger hitting coach in 2004-2005, and managed the Dodgers' Triple A affiliate in Albuquerque in each of the last two seasons. Earlier this month, Wallach signed a new deal to join the Dodger major league coaching staff, but had an out if he could land a managerial job from a selected group of teams. He interviewed for the managerial position with the Brewers, but didn't get the job. Tony Jackson of ESPN Los Angeles reports on Wallach:
Wallach confirmed via text message Monday that he is out of the running for the Brewers job. Brewers general manager Doug Melvin has narrowed his search to four finalists -- with former Seattle Mariners and Arizona Diamondbacks manager Bob Melvin and Chicago White Sox bench coach Joey Cora widely reported to be two of them -- and Wallach isn't among them.
The SB Nation Dodgers' blog True Blue LA commented on the rest of the staff:
Jackson also reported that former Royals manager Trey Hillman is the leading candidate to be Mattingly's bench coach, something that has also been reported by Ken Gurnick of MLB.com. Last week, Gurnick outlined the rest of the staff, speculating Jeff Pentland, Chili Davis, and Manny Mota as hitting coaches/instructors, and Ken Howell returning as bullpen coach.
For more Dodgers news and information, be sure to read True Blue LA.