World Series Coach Officially Added to Craig Counsell's Staff

After the 2017 season, the Chicago Cubs parted ways with hitting coach John Mallee, which was a bizarre move considering the team had just appeared in three consecutive National League Championship Series' with several players coming into their own offensively. Mallee proceeded to coach with the Philadelphia Phillies and Los Angeles Angels before the Cubs brought him back in 2023, when he was the hitting coach with the Iowa Cubs.

Earlier in the offseason, The Athletic reported that Mallee would be added to David Ross' staff at the MLB level beginning in 2024. Well, as you know, Ross, as well as the entire Cubs fan base, was shocked when news came out that the team was hiring Craig Counsell to be the new manager. While a few other names were confirmed to return and stay in Chicago following the firing of Ross, Mallee's name was in limbo while Counsell took his time to finalize his coaching staff.

On Tuesday, the Cubs officially announced their 2024 coaching staff under Counsell and Mallee remains in the fold on the MLB staff. Along with pitching coach Tommy Hottovy and hitting coach Dustin Kelly, eight other coaches from the 2023 team are coming back for this season. The other most notable name that is coming back is Mike Napoli, who was first hired by Ross in 2020, as a quality assurance coach, and will now be in his third season as the first base coach.

In addition to Mallee coming back, Ryan Flaherty, Darren Holmes and Mark Strittmatter are the other new faces on the Cubs coaching staff under Counsell's direction.

Besides the change at manager, the Cubs moved on from a pair of coaches following the end of the 2023 regular season. Back in October, the team parted ways with game strategy coach Craig Driver and bullpen coach Chris Young.

As for Counsell's right-hand man, Ryan Flaherty, the 37-year-old began his MLB coaching career following the 2019 season. The San Diego Padres brought him in as an advance scout and development coach and was later promoted to bench coach entering the 2023 season.

Flaherty has history with the Cubs, as he was selected by the team in the 41st round of the 2008 MLB Draft. After a few years in the Cubs minor league system, the Baltimore Orioles picked him in the 2011 Rule 5 Draft. The infielder played seven years in Baltimore before ending his playing days with the Atlanta Braves and Cleveland Guardians in 2018 and 2019, respectively.