Colorado Rockies: Two coaching changes and potential candidates to fill them

Internal candidates

Jeff Salazar: He is the Rockies current assistant hitting coach and he jut finished his second season as the Rockies assistant hitting coach. Prior to that, he was a hitting coach in Double-A for the Rockies for two seasons. He played in the Rockies organization from 2002 through 2006, making it to the majors in 2006. He also played in the minors for the Rockies in 2011.

If he were to be promoted to hitting coach, the Rockies would then have to find an assistant hitting coach.

Glenallen Hill: Of all the names on here, if you know the Rockies farm system, you should not find this to be surprising. There’s a few reasons why he heads the list of the names that could join Bud Black’s staff.

First off, he is the manager of the Rockies Triple-A team in Albuquerque. Secondly, other than manager, in his coaching career, he has done two other things: be a hitting coach and be a first base coach. Coincidentally, those are the two openings at the major league level.

Third, he has been a coach in the Rockies organization in some capacity since 2004, including six seasons as the Rockies first base coach from 2007 through 2012.

Fourth, he is a former teammate of Bud Black (1990 Toronto Blue Jays). Fifth, Bud Black was the Anaheim Angels pitching coach in 2001, when Glenallen Hill was on the team in his final big league season.

The two have known each other for close to 30 years, if not more. Also, a big league manager is in frequent communications with the Triple-A manager on people who could/should be called up or sent down soon.

With all of these in Hill’s favor, I would be shocked if he was not on the Rockies coaching staff in some capacity next season.