The hiring of first base coach John Shelby was an early birthday present for manager Dave Trembley.
But unlike recent Orioles managers, Trembley ? who turned 56 on Halloween ? wrapped his own gift. Trembley has been given the green light to find his own coaches, a change that is a direct result of the new regime under Andy MacPhail, president of baseball operations.
“Mr. MacPhail has been tremendous with me,” Trembley said by phone from his Daytona Shores, Fla., home. “I?ve done a lot of research and taken a lot of calls, and he has told me that I just need to recommend the final candidate, and we?ll discuss it. He?s going to give me the opportunity to hire people I feel will be the best fit for us.”
With Shelby on board, all that?s left is the manager?s right-hand man, the bench coach.
Trembley has added bullpen coach Alan Dunn, pitching coach Rick Kranitz and Shelby.
“I made a commitment when I took over as manager that I would try to bring back players who understood the Oriole way of doing things and had a history [with the team]. John Shelby fits that bill for us,” Trembley said. “He played on a championship team, came up through the minor leagues and understands ?The Oriole Way.”
Trembley has a handful of candidates in mind for the bench coach position, but with a number of managerial positions undecided, he?s in no rush to make a move.
“I haven?t been in a hurry to fill any of them,” Trembley said. “This one is obviously an important position. I?m going to take my time and make sure I get it right. I?m thinking about it every day.”
Hitting coach Terry Crowley and third base coach Juan Samuel are holdovers from former manager Sam Perlozzo, who was fired in June and replaced by Trembley.
