Atlanta Braves fans likely weren't expecting to see the team hire multiple coaches during the offseason.
However, that's exactly what the team needed to do as Ron Washington departed to become the Los Angeles Angels manager with Eric Young Sr. joining him. Atlanta also lost bullpen coach Drew French who accepted the position of pitching coach with the Baltimore Orioles.
Matt Tuiasosopo is the new 3B coach. Tom Goodwin will be the 1B coach and Erick Abreu will be the bullpen coach. As I said last month, one former prominent Braves player sung Goodwin's praises when I mentioned him as a candidate https://t.co/rxSvOiUEVW
— Mark Bowman (@mlbbowman) December 11, 2023
Atlanta Braves 2024 coaching staff takes shape
The Braves announced all three replacements for these positions on Monday afternoon including two familiar faces and one new one.
Matt Tuiasosopo, Tom Goodwin, and Erick Abreu have been named as replacements for these vacancies.
If you get started now, you might just be able to spell Tuiasosopo's name with your eyes closed. Good luck.
Matt Tuiasosopo
Tuiasosopo will be the new third base coach for the Braves and will also assist bench coach Walt Weiss with coaching the infield. Tuiasosopo served as manager for the Rome Braves from 2019-2020 and moved on to manage the Gwinnett Stripers from 2021-2023.
Matt had a brief MLB career and spent most of his time at the minor-league level. He played for the Mariners (2008-2010), Tigers (2013), and Braves (2016). Though, his time in the majors was very limited with just 155 big league games played. He also spent time with the Blue Jays, Orioles, and White Sox.
He did serve some time briefly as Atlanta's third base coach in 2023 when Ron Washington was being inducted into the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame.
Tom Goodwin
Tom Goodwin will take over the first base coach role in the absence of EY. If you aren't aware, Goodwin has served as a roving instructor for the Atlanta Braves over the last two seasons.
Goodwin had a 14-year MLB career spanning the 90s and early 2000s. He spent time between the Dodgers, Royals, Rangers, Rockies, Giants, and Cubs.
This isn't the first coaching assignment held by Goodwin as he was the first base coach for the Mets (2012-2017) and Red Sox (2018-2021). According to MLB.com's Mark Bowman, a former Braves player had nothing but great things to say about Tom Goodwin when he was mentioned as a candidate.
Erick Abreu
Source : Erick Abreu on the left is the new bullpen coach of the Atlanta Braves in MLB #Braves #Atlanta #ErickAbreu pic.twitter.com/FdvdP6TS9P
— Mike Rodriguez (@mikedeportes) December 7, 2023
Lastly, we have Erick Abreu who is the newest addition to the organization. Abreu will take on the bullpen coaching role. He is joining the Braves from the Houston Astros organization where he served as the team’s Triple-A pitching coach for the previous three seasons.
This will be his first-ever appointment to a position on an MLB coaching staff. He has been with the Astros' minor league system in a coaching role for many years as far back as 2014. He is inheriting a very talented pitching staff and will have plenty of tools at his disposal after some great bullpen additions this offseason.
It's nice to finally have an idea of the faces we will be seeing a lot of as we approach Spring Training and a push for another World Series title. These are great additions but they have some big shoes to fill.