Detroit’s Coaching Carousel Turns Again — At Least One New Leader Joins the Tigers in 2026.yv

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• Evan Woodbery | [email protected]

DETROIT — First base coach Anthony Iapoce will not be returning to the Detroit Tigers coaching staff in 2026.

The news was first reported by SportsNet New York.

Iapoce, 52, joined the Tigers’ major-league staff in 2024 after managing Triple-A Toledo in 2023. He previously served as the Boston Red Sox’s senior hitting coordinator in 2022 and spent six seasons as a big-league hitting coach with the Chicago Cubs (2019–21) and Texas Rangers (2016–18).

Iapoce played 11 seasons in the minor leagues and independent ball before becoming a coach.

It’s the first offseason change to a staff that remained intact from 2024 to 2025.

“We have a tremendous staff,” Hinch said. “We’re going to evaluate everything like we always do. While I think our staff has met challenges and pushed this team forward, we wouldn’t be doing our jobs if we didn’t debrief about everything.”

Hinch, who agreed to a second contract extension this season, is entering his sixth year as the Tigers’ manager. Three coaches have been with him since the beginning of his tenure: bench coach George Lombard, pitching coach Chris Fetter and assistant pitching coach Juan Nieves.

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Evan Woodbery has covered the Detroit Tigers and Major League Baseball for MLive.com since 2016. He has previously covered the Saints/NFL for The Times-Picayune/NOLA.com; University of Tennessee athletics for…

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