bengie molina's baseball resume doesn't read like a hitting coach. he finished his career with a 4.0% walk rate, a .130 ISO and a .275 average. his career best wOBA came with the Angels in 2005, with a .337 wOBA. he played with the giants, the blue jays, the angels, and (briefly) the rangers. but the fact that he's backing up john mabry suggests that he's not primarily taking the coaching job by virtue of what he's done on the field.

unlike other recent hires, bengie molina's new role as assistant hitting coach does not follow significant time spent in an informal capacity or occasional instructor's role for the club. it's not clear what led up to his hiring or what drew him to the cardinals, a team for which he has never played. one must assume that his role as elder brother to the cardinals' starting catcher, yadier molina, is a factor. but given the relatively minor role of the ordinary assistant hitting coach, this seems like a decent place to start.

good luck to bengie and john as they try to keep up the success of the 2012 cardinals in the upcoming season.

[Editor/Twitter-account-holder's note:

@vivaelbirdos not yet named. offered job. naming comes later.

— Derrick Goold (@dgoold) December 5, 2012

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