Orioles Hilariously Hire Cody Asche and Tommy Joseph as Hitting Coaches

Jul 15, 2016; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia Phillies first baseman Tommy Joseph (19) and left fielder Cody Asche (25) and right fielder Peter Bourjos (17) take the field against the New York Mets at Citizens Bank Park. The New York Mets won 5-3. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports

  • Phillies

Orioles writer Roch Kubatko reported on Tuesday that the Orioles will make Cody Asche, who had been working in the O's organization as an "offensive strategy" coach, their hitting coach for the 2025 MLB season. Rubatko also said that Tommy Joseph, currently an assistant hitting coach with the Mariners, will join the O's in that same assistant coach role.

Phillies fans may remember Asche and Joseph from their roles on the offensive juggernaut that was the 2016 Phils:

Asche actually played four seasons with the Phillies (2013 through 2016), then made his final major league appearance as a player with the White Sox in 2017. Joseph's two seasons with the Phils (2016 and 2017) constitute his entire major league career.

It's undeniably funny for the Orioles to hire these guys as hitting coaches when they're best known as pretty bad players on pretty bad Phillies squads.

But the skill of hitting a baseball is vastly different than the skills associated with successfully coaching others to hit baseballs. Asche and Joseph may excel as coaches for an Orioles team that features a lot of offensive talent.

What's the saying? "Those who can... do, those who can't... teach."


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John Foley

Before joining OnPattison.com, John Foley was a Phillies beat writer for PHLY Sports and the founder of a popular independent Phillies newsletter. He has provided nontraditional local sports coverage since 2013. Foley grew up in the Kensington neighborhood of Philadelphia. He's a proud product of the Philadelphia public school system, a Penn State grad, and a Georgetown Law alum. A licensed attorney, he sits on the board of the Papermill Food Hub, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit dedicated to helping families in need throughout the city. Find him on your favorite social media: @2008philz.