Houston Astros have filled out their 2019 coaching staff

The Astros announced they had assembled their coaching staff for the upcoming season. Three have been promoted from within and one brought in from outside.

Jeff Luhnow was pleased they were able to put together their coaching staff before the holiday. He also mentioned how fortunate the Astros were, to be able to utilize quality personnel within the organization. Josh Miller will serve as the bullpen coach, Don Kelly the first base coach and Troy Snitker and Alex Cintrón the hitting coaches.

Josh Miller, 39, has spent twelve years in the Astros’ organization, most recently as their minor league pitching coordinator.   He pitched for ten years in the minors, four of those in Houston’s minor league system from 2005-08. He compiled a 67-55 record with an ERA of 4.01 over his career. He was the Astros pro scout in 2011-12. Miller then went to Greenville to be their pitching coach for three years and was promoted to minor league pitching coordinator in 2016.

Troy Snitker, 29, is the son of Atlanta Braves manager Brian Snitker. He was drafted by the Braves as a catcher in 2011 and played with their minor league club for two years. Snitker has been with the Astros for the last four years coaching in the minors, most recently as the hitting coach for the Corpus Christi Hooks.

Alex Cintrón, 38, played for nine years in the majors from 2001-09 as an infielder and had a career .275 batting average. He was the Astros’ first base coach last season and prior to that filled several roles, such as advance scout and assistant coach.

Don Kelly, 38, spent nine years as a utility player in the major leagues for various teams, as recently as 2016. He was brought in from Detroit where he served as their pro scout.

With the recent exodus of coaches moving on to other teams, taking on bigger responsibilities, there have been a lot of uncertainties. Now that A.J. Hinch has his staff complete, they can concentrate on the job at hand, getting the team back into the World Series.