The Giants face a critical offseason, and one of their top priorities will be building their coaching staff under newly hired manager Bob Melvin.
Melvin appeared on the latest episode of the Giants Talk podcast with NBC Sports Bay Area’s Laura Britt and said San Francisco may be considering adding a coach with past ties to the organization to its new staff. hinted that there was.
“We’re trying to get a coaching staff together here,” Melvin told Britt. “We’re trying to incorporate local flavor as well. Maybe some past Giants players will be featured as well. So that’s the focus right now.”
Melvin went out of his way to express his desire to coach longtime Giants third baseman Matt Williams after he served on his staff in Oakland and spent the past two seasons with the San Diego Padres.
“Today is November 1st and a lot of contracts expire today,” Melvin told Laura Britt. “So today is kind of a day where we can reach out to some players who might be under contract somewhere. I know Matt Williams comes to mind, but he is a very important person that we’re going to bring to this staff. And I hope that’s the case. ”
Williams managed the Washington Nationals for two seasons in 2014 and 2015 and served as Melvin’s third base coach on several occasions.
More importantly, Williams has Bay Area roots, which Melvin has made a priority after spending a decade as a local icon with the Giants from 1987 to 1996.
Mr. Melvin then explained in detail why he believes connections with the community and organizations are essential when recruiting staff to rebuild the franchise.
“We want our players to understand the history of the Giants, and a lot of our players who grew up in the Bay Area understand that,” Melvin said. “I also want continuity in the organization because when you’re in a good organization, you have to believe you have a chance to make it to the big leagues. Usually in Oakland, coaching positions are vacant. “It came from within the system. It came from a system where everyone came together and there was a certain way to do it, just like there’s a Giants way, A. It created a really good organization where everyone knew there was a way to do things.”
The Giants’ new manager says there is no exact blueprint for filling out the coaching staff, but most importantly, he wants to create a balanced mix of outside hires while also providing promotion opportunities from within the organization. It was made clear that the approach was to maintain.
“So there has to be a balance,” Melvin said. “I’m a new player, there are some players who are important to me and I will bring them in from outside, but I also want to promote from within and hopefully some players. I think there’s going to be a carryover coach, but hopefully there’s at least one coach in this system that you would see in the big leagues, so it’s a little bit more balanced.”
Melvin joins the Giants with 20 years of experience as a major league manager, and his lengthy resume and first-hand knowledge will be invaluable as they replenish their staff ahead of one of the most important seasons in franchise history. That will definitely be proven.
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