Twins Bring In Former Cardinals Hitter as Minor League Coach

The Minnesota Twins added a familiar name to their player development staff this week, as former outfielder José Martínez is joining the organization as a hitting coach.

Martínez shared the news himself on X on Friday, and the job is in the minor leagues and will be his first coaching stint in affiliated ball.

Neither his post nor the report said which affiliate or level he will work with, but even without that detail, this is a nice addition for a club trying to build up young hitters.

Martínez wrote his message in Spanish, and one line summed up why he wanted the job, as he shared in his announcement on X.

"Hoy me toca compartir lo que aprendí como pelotero y ayudar a otros a construir su propio camino."

In that line, he said it is now his turn to share what he learned as a player and help others build their own path.

He also told his followers to never stop dreaming and to keep working even on days when they do not see results yet.

Martínez, a native of La Guaira, Venezuela, took a long road to the majors before the Royals traded him to the Cardinals for cash in May 2016, and he made his big-league debut with St. Louis on Sept. 6, 2016.

He hit .309 with 14 home runs in 106 games in 2017 and followed that with a .305 average, 17 home runs and 83 RBI in 152 games in 2018.

St. Louis traded him to Tampa Bay along with outfielder Randy Arozarena in January 2020, and the Rays later sent him to the Cubs that August.

He signed with the Mets for 2021, but MLB Trade Rumors reported that a meniscus tear in spring training kept him out all season, and he never played in the majors again.

He finished with a .289/.356/.447 line, 43 home runs and 182 RBI in 432 big-league games before playing in the Mexican League and in winter ball in Venezuela.

The Twins scored 739 runs in 2026, tied with the Yankees for second in the American League, even though they finished 77-85 and third in the AL Central.

At the big-league level, Keith Beauregard is the hitting coach, with Trevor Amicone and Rayden Sierra as his assistants.

This hire fits a busy fall of staff changes, after the club added a new pitching coach in October.

That coach has already explained his philosophy, and it will be interesting to hear how Martínez plans to teach hitting.

I think this is a smart move, because Martínez was a career .289 hitter who had to fight his way up through the minors, and young hitters in the system will see someone who knows how hard that climb is.

Minnesota has young hitters close to the majors, with some already pushing for an Opening Day spot, and the next wave behind them can learn a lot from a coach like Martínez.

The general managers meetings are next week, so more Twins news should follow soon.