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TIGERS NAME JEFF JONES AS CLUB’S PITCHING COACH
Mike Rojas Joins Staff as Bullpen Coach,
DETROIT --- The Detroit Tigers today announced the club has named Jeff Jones the club’s pitching coach and Mike Rojas will join the major league coaching staff as the team’s bullpen coach. Rick Knapp has been relieved of his duties as the club’s pitching coach.
Jones has served as Detroit’s bullpen coach since being named to the position by Jim Leyland on November 9, 2006. He began his professional coaching career with the Tigers organization in 1989, serving as a pitching coach at the minor league level throughout the years with Single A Fayetteville (1989), Double A London (1991-92), Double A Jacksonville (1996) and Triple A Toledo (1990, 1993-94, 1997-98, 2000-06). Jones worked as the bullpen coach in Detroit in 1995, the final month of the 1998 season and all of 1999, in addition to joining the major league staff to serve the remainder of the season in that role on both September 7, 2000 and April 9, 2002.
Jones was selected by Oakland in the 13th round of the June 1977 draft and his pitching career spanned 11 seasons (1977-87). He saw action at the major league level during five seasons with Oakland (1980-84).
Rojas joined the Tigers organization in 2004 to serve as the manager at Single A Oneonta. He spent two seasons as the manager at Single A Lakeland (2005-06) and one as the manager at Triple A Toledo (2007) before he worked three seasons as the organization’s minor league field coordinator (2008-10). Rojas was named Detroit’s Director of Player Development on August 6, 2010, a role he held until being named to the major league coaching staff today.
Rojas will join the club in Anaheim on Monday as the Tigers begin a seven-game road trip leading up to the all-star break. Tigers Vice President/Assistant General Manager Al Avila will continue to oversee the organization’s player development operation, receiving additional assistance from the club’s Vice President, Amateur Scouting/Special Assistant to the General Manager David Chadd and Avila will continue working directly with Kevin Bradshaw (minor league field coordinator) and Jon Matlack (minor league pitching coordinator).
Knapp joined the Tigers as the club’s pitching coach on October 17, 2008. Prior to joining the Tigers, he served 12 seasons as the minor league pitching coordinator with the Minnesota Twins (1997-2008).
