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Once the final out was recorded by Cody Decker on a ground out to end the 2015 Padres season, changes were being made throughout the offseason. But the changes for the Padres did not only involve the product on the field; a multitude of changes occurred off the field. While we will still have some of the same coaches on the staff from years past and returning broadcasters still talking into the microphones, their places may have changed and new additions have joined the fray. Along with the new members to the team, one broadcaster will be spending his final year in the broadcast booth.
Padres Coaching Staff
Andy Green
Green is entering his first season with the Padres. He agreed to become the manager of the team on October 29th, 2015. Before joining the Padres, Green served as the third base coach for the Arizona Diamondbacks. Prior to coaching in the major leagues, Green was a two-time Southern League Manager of the Year award winner with the Mobile BayBears in 2013 and 2014. Before that, he led the Missoula Osprey to a Pioneer League Championship in 2012.
In 2016, Green takes the reigns of a team that lost notable players like Justin Upton and Ian Kennedy to free agency in the offseason. He'll look to improve on the 74-88 record for the Padres under Bud Black, Dave Roberts, and Pat Murphy in 2015. Joining him on the bench are returning coaches Glenn Hoffman (11th season) and Darren Balsley (14th season), as well as new faces in the Padres clubhouse.
Mark McGwire
McGwire is entering his 1st season with the San Diego Padres. Since 2010, he has served as the hitting coach for the St. Louis Cardinals and the Los Angeles Dodgers. With the Padres, he will enter the season as the bench coach on Andy Green’s staff. His impact has already been seen on the field during Spring Training with multiple players attributing some success to him and hitting coach Alan Zinter.
Brock is in his second season with the Padres organization. In 2015, he served as the minor league coordinator for the Padres before entering 2016 as the new first base coach. Prior to joining the Padres, Brock was the first base coach for the Houston Astros in 2014. He was also the outfield and baserunning coordinator for the Florida/Miami Marlins from 2007-2013.
Zinter joins the Padres after serving as a hitting coach in the Diamondbacks organization (2008-2011), minor league hitting coordinator for the Cleveland Indians (2012-2014), and assistant hitting coach for the Houston Astros in 2015.
The hitting coach position has been very fluid for the last few years. Mark Kotsay, Phil Plantier, Randy Ready, and Alonzo Powell have served as hitting coaches for the Padres since 2010.
Fox Sports San Diego, Mighty 1090, and Padres Beat Writers
2016 will be the final season Dick Enberg spends in the Fox Sports San Diego booth. Enberg has been in the booth for the Padres since 2010 with Mark Grant who is entering his 21st season as a Padres broadcaster. In his final season, Enberg is slated to be in the booth for around 100 of the 158 games being televised on Fox Sports San Diego this season. His 2017 replacement, Don Orsillo, will join Mark Grant for the remaining games being broadcast by FSSD.
Orsillo is joining the Fox Sports San Diego broadcast team for his 1st year with the Padres. Orsillo is joining FSSD after spending fifteen years with the Boston Red Sox broadcasting for NESN. He is set to be the full time broadcaster for the Padres in 2017, but will be an occasional fill-in for Dick Enberg in 2016. With Enberg doing 100 games, Orsillo will do the rest of the FSSD broadcasts with Mark Grant. Don Orsillo will be making his regular season debut starting with the Arizona Diamondbacks series on Friday April 15th.
Julie is in her first year as a sideline reporter for the Padres and Fox Sports San Diego. Most recently, she was an on-air host for OK! TV, a talk show. She has experience in the sports world serving as a sideline reporter for MASN and the Washington Nationals as well as spending time with SportsNet New York hosting Mets Weekly.
Coming over from Corpus Christi where she worked as a reporter for KRIS, Michelle will be the new host of Padres POV while occasionally serving as the sideline reporter this year. She graduated from the University of San Diego and worked as a producer for the Prep Pigskin Report on KUSI.
Entering his third year with the Padres, the former host of Padres Social Hour leaves the studio for the radio booth to take over a full-time broadcasting role with Ted Leitner, who is entering his 37th season as the Padres radio announcer. He has spent time in the announce booth on occasion in previous seasons. Mike Janela is stepping into the role of Padres Social Hour host
Janela has become the new host of Padres Social Hour, replacing Jesse Agler, who left the studio for the radio booth. Janela has done play by play as well as host a show for the Villanova Wildcats and UNC Greensboro. The Syracuse graduate has also worked for Guinness World Records as a judge, host, and manager of digital content.
In a surprise move during Spring Training, Brock announced he was parting ways with the Padres beat writer position and heading back to the Northwest with his family. Brock was entering his 10th year covering the Padres before he made the decision to move back to Washington. Brock made multiple appearances during the Padres broadcasts and has appeared on Padres Social Hour in years past. The Padres beat writer position has been taken over by AJ Cassavell.
AJ Cassavell is starting his first year as the Padres beat writer, a position most recently held by Corey Brock. Cassavell has experience as a writer for MLB.com and Sports on Earth since graduating from Penn State in 2011.