Orioles hire Scott Coolbaugh as hitting coach

The Baltimore Orioles have hired Scott Coolbaugh as their new hitting coach.

The Baltimore Orioles have hired Scott Coolbaugh as their new hitting coach, the team announced on Friday. 

The Orioles interviewed Coolbaugh on Thursday, according to the Baltimore Sun. Baltimore's hitting coach last season, Jim Presley, was reassigned to a different role in the organization in November. 

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Coolbaugh spent 2014 as the Texas Rangers minor league hitting coordinator. He was the Rangers hitting coach from June 2011 through the 2012 season, and had been with the organization for eight years. 

As a player, Coolbaugh spent parts of four seasons in the majors and also spent two years in Japan. He is the brother of former minor league first base coach Mike Coolbaugh, who died after he was hit in the head by a line drive during a game in 2007. 

- Molly Geary