Retired St. Louis Cardinals outfielder could join the Baltimore Orioles as a coach

The Baltimore Orioles recently fired manager Brandon Hyde and field coordinator/catching instructor Tim Cossins after the club started off the 2025 season with a 15-28 record. Tony Mansolino, formerly the Orioles' third base coach, supplanted Hyde as the club's interim manager.

In order to backfill these vacancies, the Orioles have begun seeking outside help.

According to Ken Rosenthal, the Baltimore Orioles are in talks to hire former St. Louis Cardinals outfielder and coach John Mabry as a coach.

Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reported on Thursday that the Orioles are "in discussions" with John Mabry to join their coaching staff. Mabry, 54, was most recently employed by the Miami Marlins as an assistant hitting coach. Mabry was fired in October of 2024 with the rest of the Marlins coaching staff, including two other former Cardinals in Jon Jay and Skip Schumaker.

Jay now works as an assistant coach with the Cardinals while Schumaker is working as a special advisor for the Texas Rangers, whom the Cardinals are about to play in a three-game series.

According to Rosenthal, Mabry would join Baltimore as "a senior advisor on new manager Tony Mansolino's staff." Rosenthal states that Mabry would take on the role formerly occupied by the aforementioned Tim Cossins.

Mabry's coaching career goes back more than a decade when he was an assistant hitting coach to Mark McGwire following the Cardinals' 2011 World Series victory. Mabry then became the Cardinals' hitting coach in 2012 following McGwire's departure to the Los Angeles Dodgers. Former manager Mike Matheny and John Mabry were both relieved of their duties just prior to the 2018 MLB All-Star break.

As hitting coach of the Cardinals, Mabry preaches patience and confidence. He was able to look at the big picture and not get wrapped up in individual moments during the game. This is evidenced by his teams never falling out of the top half of the National League in walk rate during his time. However, the 2013-2018 Cardinals didn't always excel at scoring runs.

After his time in St. Louis, Mabry travelled to Kansas City in 2019 to join the Royals' staff as a coach then subsequently to Miami, where he remained from 2022 until 2024 with former Cardinal Skip Schumaker.

Mabry's inclusion on Baltimore's coaching staff would bring plenty of experience both as a player and a coach for the Orioles. Baltimore's roster is rife with young talent just waiting to be cracked open. He would also join a coaching staff that features a first-year hitting coach in Cody Asche, first-year bench coach in Robinson Chirinos, and second-year pitching coach in Drew French.

Rosenthal also discussed Baltimore's proximity to John Mabry's childhood home in Wilmington, Delaware.

Should Mabry join Baltimore, he would become just another part of a slew of former Cardinals with the Orioles. Outfielders Tyler O'Neill and Dylan Carlson and relievers Andrew Kittredge and Matt Bowman all play for Baltimore. Up until last week, starting pitcher Kyle Gibson was an Oriole, too.

Mabry played the bulk of his 14-year career with the Cardinals, and he finished with a modest .281/.335/.411 slash line, 53 home runs, and 272 runs batted in.