While new President of Baseball Operations Paul Toboni and his front office continue to fill out the coaching staff surrounding first-year manager Blake Butera, other clubs around the league are busy filling out their new staffs as well.
On the same day that the Washington Nationals announced numerous hires for their 2026 coaching staff including pitching coach Simon Mathews, catching coordinator Bobby Wilson, and bench coach Michael Johns, a National League East division rival just hired a coach that Nationals fans couldn't wait to see walk out the door.
The Nationals were known for having a very old-fashioned approach at the plate over the last few seasons, and it now appears as if the biggest reason why is going to be facing off against the Nationals pretty often for the 2026 season and possibly beyond.
After being basically known for being a team that hit way too many groundballs over the last couple of seasons, former Nationals hitting coach Darnell Coles, a coach who emphasizes getting on top of the ball and hitting it up the middle, will be heading to the Atlanta Braves. Although he was the primary hitting coach for the Nationals for the last few seasons under Dave Martinez, Coles will be serving as the assistant to Tim Hyers in his new role.
For Nationals fans, myself included, this news really could not be much better. Do not get me wrong here, I'm sure Darnell is a great guy, but his old-school approach to hitting was the complete opposite of what this team needed given the plethora of young talent. For guys like James Wood and Dylan Crews, who absolutely ooze star potential, they don't need to be taught about the importance of hitting grounders that ultimately kill rallies.
Coles was thought of as a potential firing candidate numerous times over the last few seasons, but things seemingly came to an ugly head in the 2025 campaign. James Wood struggled immensely in the second half, and it became clear that Coles was not going to be able to help him break out of his slump at all. Similarly, Coles failed to get the best out of numerous top prospects like Dylan Crews, Brady House, and Robert Hassell III, among others as the Nationals' rebuild has floundered in large part due to lackluster results at the plate.
While the Nationals themselves have yet to name their successor to Coles, we should likely expect them to announce a hire in the near future, as it's clear from recent events that Toboni and Butera are hard at work filling out the staff.
What do you think of Darnell Coles staying in the division? As always, please let me know on X, @DCBerk.