Rangers hire Rangel as pitching coach

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) Julio Rangel has been hired by the Texas Rangers as pitching coach for new manager Chris Woodward.

Rangel will be with a big league staff for the first time after 12 years as a pitching instructor and coordinator at the minor league level with the San Francisco Giants and Cleveland Indians.

With Rangel’s hiring Friday, the Rangers have filled six spots on Woodward’s staff.

Rangel, 43, was minor league pitching coordinator for the Giants this year, his only season in the San Francisco organization. He spent the previous 11 seasons in the Indians organization, including a stint as the interim pitching coach at Triple-A Columbus in 2012.

The Panama native was signed by the New York Yankees as a 17-year-old in 1993 and spent his entire seven-year professional career in the Yankees farm system. He reached as high as Double-A during his last season in 2000.

The Rangers earlier this week named Luis Ortiz as a first-time hitting coach. Ortiz last season was assistant hitting coach with the NL champion Los Angeles Dodgers, where Woodward was the third base coach.

There are three assistants returning who were on former manager Jeff Banister’s staff, with bench coach Don Wakamatsu, third base coach Tony Beasley and first base coach Hector Ortiz, who had been in that role before being the bullpen coach last season.

Jayce Tingler, in the organization since 2007, will be the major league player development field coordinator.

The Rangers still likely will hire a bullpen coach and an assistant hitting coach to fill out their big league staff.

The contracts of pitching coach Doug Brocail and assistant pitching coach Dan Warthen weren’t renewed. Steve Buechele, who was the first base coach last season, will be a special assistant in baseball operations to assist at the major and minor league levels.