GaryMrMets
11-17-2005, 11:46 PM
Red Sox hire Al Nipper as bullpen coach
By MARK PRATT
.c The Associated Press
BOSTON (AP) - Al Nipper, a former Red Sox draft pick who played the majority of his career with the club, was hired Wednesday as Boston's bullpen coach.
The right-hander, selected in the eighth round of the 1980 amateur draft, won 42 games with the Red Sox from 1983-87, and was a member of the 1986 team that lost to the New York Mets in the World Series.
``I am very excited, to put it bluntly,'' the 46-year-old Nipper said.
He said he's eager for the opportunity to work with the team's promising young pitchers, including Craig Hansen, Manny Delcarmen and Jonathan Papelbon, and to work closely with pitching coach Dave Wallace.
``They ... have bright futures, as do a lot of our pitchers coming up,'' he said. ``I might be able to help Wally (Wallace) and give him some insight, their personalities, some mechanical things. I am an extra set of eyes. As the bullpen coach I need to build that bond with Wally and be his confidante.''
Bill Haselman, a former major league catcher, was the Red Sox bullpen coach last season, but the team wanted someone with pitching experience in the position, said Bill Lajoie, the team's adviser for baseball operations.
``We needed a person like Al around to work with our younger pitchers,'' he said.
Haselman has not yet been reassigned, but the team has an opening for a first-base coach, and it is likely he will fill that position.
Nipper was 46-50 with a 4.52 ERA in a seven-year major league career that included stints with the Chicago Cubs and Cleveland Indians.
He began his coaching career with the Red Sox in 1992 with the rookie-level Gulf Coast Red Sox and remained in the organization through 1997. He was the Texas Rangers' minor league pitching coordinator for two seasons and Kansas City Royals' pitching coach for two seasons. He returned to the Red Sox organization in 2003 as the pitching coach at Single-A Sarasota.
The team also announced that Haselmen, Wallace, Ron Jackson, and Brad Mills have been invited to return to the major league coaching staff. The team previously announced that DeMarlo Hale will replace Dale Sveum as third base coach.
11/16/05 22:44 EST
Copyright 2003 The Associated Press. The information contained in the AP news report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or otherwise distributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press. All active hyperlinks have been inserted by AOL.
By MARK PRATT
.c The Associated Press
BOSTON (AP) - Al Nipper, a former Red Sox draft pick who played the majority of his career with the club, was hired Wednesday as Boston's bullpen coach.
The right-hander, selected in the eighth round of the 1980 amateur draft, won 42 games with the Red Sox from 1983-87, and was a member of the 1986 team that lost to the New York Mets in the World Series.
``I am very excited, to put it bluntly,'' the 46-year-old Nipper said.
He said he's eager for the opportunity to work with the team's promising young pitchers, including Craig Hansen, Manny Delcarmen and Jonathan Papelbon, and to work closely with pitching coach Dave Wallace.
``They ... have bright futures, as do a lot of our pitchers coming up,'' he said. ``I might be able to help Wally (Wallace) and give him some insight, their personalities, some mechanical things. I am an extra set of eyes. As the bullpen coach I need to build that bond with Wally and be his confidante.''
Bill Haselman, a former major league catcher, was the Red Sox bullpen coach last season, but the team wanted someone with pitching experience in the position, said Bill Lajoie, the team's adviser for baseball operations.
``We needed a person like Al around to work with our younger pitchers,'' he said.
Haselman has not yet been reassigned, but the team has an opening for a first-base coach, and it is likely he will fill that position.
Nipper was 46-50 with a 4.52 ERA in a seven-year major league career that included stints with the Chicago Cubs and Cleveland Indians.
He began his coaching career with the Red Sox in 1992 with the rookie-level Gulf Coast Red Sox and remained in the organization through 1997. He was the Texas Rangers' minor league pitching coordinator for two seasons and Kansas City Royals' pitching coach for two seasons. He returned to the Red Sox organization in 2003 as the pitching coach at Single-A Sarasota.
The team also announced that Haselmen, Wallace, Ron Jackson, and Brad Mills have been invited to return to the major league coaching staff. The team previously announced that DeMarlo Hale will replace Dale Sveum as third base coach.
11/16/05 22:44 EST
Copyright 2003 The Associated Press. The information contained in the AP news report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or otherwise distributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press. All active hyperlinks have been inserted by AOL.