Astros begin offseason coaching staff shake-up with departure of key hitting coaches

Eric Cole

Kansas City Royals v Houston Astros / Jack Gorman/GettyImages

Once the Houston Astros failed to make the postseason this season, it was clear that someone was going to have to pay for that. Some thought that manager Joe Espada and/or Dana Brown could be on the chopping block, but the most recent reporting has both Astros leaders safe for the moment. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for hitting coach Alex Cintron and others.

There were already hints that Houston's hitting coaches could be in the doghouse when there were reports that both Cintron and Troy Snitker were under a microscope again after the Astros' offense took a nose drive in the second half. With Espada and Brown's status locked in, it appears as though Cintron will be the first domino to fall as the Astros did not renew his contract. However, he was not the last.

Can confirm the Astros will not bring back hitting coach Troy Snitker and catching coach Michael Collins, as @brianmctaggart first reported.
— Chandler Rome (@Chandler_Rome) October 9, 2025

Astros jettison hitting coach Alex Cintron, more coaching changes likely to come

Again, this isn't overly surprising news given previous reporting, but it is still pretty wild how Cintron's star has faded. Cintron had been with the organization for nine years, and that included some pretty great Astros offenses. However, back-to-back seasons where Houston hitters chased far too much out of the zone and failed to see many pitches proved to be a bridge too far for the organization.

The same report also indicated that more coaching changes "could be coming" which was definitely not great news for Snitker. Despite being a fixture on the Astros' coaching staff since the 2019 season, it is clear that the focus is currently on the offense's downturn and Snitker is sadly an easy scapegoat for those struggles. As for Collins getting the boot, that is a little bit more surprising, although it is hard to argue with the fact that Yainer Diaz regressed a bit in 2025.

As to what changes could happen beyond that, that is harder to predict. Houston's pitching staff was largely good, which should keep Josh Miller and Mill Murphy pretty safe, and bench coach Omar Lopez is highly regarded within the organization and could be the team's safety net if/when they change their mind about Espada.

In short, heads are starting to roll in the Astros' organization, and there is more likely to come before the offseason officially arrives. However, exactly who will be next is still very much up in the air.

Eric Cole

I started my career writing about baseball covering the Atlanta Braves for SB Nation's Talking Chop back in 2015 which has since been renamed Battery Power. After years of writing for those fine folks, I made the decision to take over as Site Expert at House That Hank Built before becoming a full-time MLB Staff Writer for FanSided in 2023. Along the way, I have been a guest on multiple ESPN radio affiliates as well as 680 The Fan and 92.9 The Game to discuss Braves baseball and especially Braves prospects and was a long-time host on the Battery Power podcast. These days, I continue to write about the Braves as well as covering the Astros, Padres, and Angels with particular expertise with minor league coverage, the MLB Draft, and bashing Anthony Rendon when possible. When I am not writing about or talking about baseball (which is seldom), I am an avid baseball card collector (Maddux and Soroka being my primary personal collections) and I also collect shark teeth. All other sports are mostly dead to me as my Bills have broken my heart too many times.