Beloved Pirates manager Clint Hurdle punished with promotion into new role

After a brief hiatus from coaching, a beloved former Pittsburgh Pirates manager is headed back to the dugout. Clint Hurdle, who managed the Pirates from 2011-2019 and led them to the only three postseason appearances they've made this millennium, has been named the hitting coach of the Colorado Rockies for the remainder of the 2025 season.

Hurdle, who had been in his role as a special assistant to the general manager in Colorado since he came out of retirement in 2021, is set to take over the role for Hensley Meulens, who was relieved of his duties Wednesday.

This will be Hurdle's second coaching stint with Colorado. He first joined the Rockies organization in 1994, working as a minor league hitting instructor, and eventually got the big league manager job in 2002. He held that role until 2009, when he was fired in the middle of the season after leading the Rockies on their run to the World Series in 2007.

The Texas Rangers hired Hurdle as their hitting coach following the 2009 season. He helped outfielder Josh Hamilton win American League MVP, lead the AL with a .359 batting average and reach the World Series in 2010 – the same year Hurdle was hired by Pittsburgh.

Beloved Pirates manager Clint Hurdle punished with promotion into new role with Rockies

Hurdle led the Pirates to a 47-43 record at the All-Star break in 2011, their first .500 record at that point since 1992. He also did the same in 2012, going 48-37, but both seasons ended under .500. Pittsburgh finally got over the hump in 2013, when they finished 94-68 to end their lengthy streak of losing seasons and make it to the playoffs for the first time in two decades.

The Pirates won the Wild Card game against the Cincinnati Reds that year, but they went on to lose the NLDS to the St. Louis Cardinals in five games. The Pirates made the playoffs in 2014 with an 88-74 record, but they lost to the eventual World Series champion San Francisco Giants. In 2015, the Pirates lost in the Wild Card game to the eventual World Series Champions in the Chicago Cubs.

Pittsburgh wouldn't get above .500 the next four seasons under Hurdle, and he was fired in September 2019. He would retire on Nov. 12, finishing with a managerial record of 735-720 in nine seasons.

In his return to coaching, Hurdle will face the unenviable task of improving one of the worst offenses in baseball (yes, even worse than the Pirates). The Rockies are currently 3-15, the worst record in the majors, and their team-wide batting line of .220/.285/.344 translates to a 65 wRC+ – also the worst in the league.

Perhaps after a few games in the Rockies' dugout, Hurdle will be reminded of his days in Pittsburgh and remember why he retired from coaching in the first place.

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