Veteran Major League Baseball (MLB) manager and coach John McLaren (USA) will replace former MLB All-Star and expert in player development Jeffrey Hammonds (also from the US) on the WBSC Coach Commission.
McLaren joins a WBSC Coach Commission that is currently chaired by Marco Mazzieri and includes Rafael Colon, Kyla Holas, Craig Montvidas, David Santos, DJ Wabick and Andrea D'Auria.
McLaren Bio
McLaren's coaching career started in 1979 in the Toronto Blue Jays organization. He was promoted to the MLB staff in 1986. He also coached at MLB level for the Boston Red Sox, the Cincinnati Reds, the Seattle Mariners and the Tampa Bay Rays before managing the Seattle Mariners in 2007 and 2008. He coached the Washington Nationals from 2009 to 2011, including a period as interim manager. His most recent MLB coaching experience was with the Philadelphia Phillies in 2016 and 2017.
McLaren also has a vast experience in working with national teams and international competitions. He served on the USA Baseball National Team coaching staff during the inaugural World Baseball Classic in 2006. He was on Italy's coaching staff during the WBSC Intercontinental Cup 2010 and helped them win an historic bronze medal. He managed China in the 2013 and 2017 World Baseball Classics and in the 2015 Asian Baseball Championship.
While he was the manager of the Texas HairHogs of the independent American Association league in 2018, McLaren was instrumental in leading a players development project that brought 13 players from the Chinese National Team to the AirHogs' roster.
McLaren was born in Galveston, Texas, in 1951. He played catcher in the Houston Astros Farm System from 1970 to 1976.
