SAN DIEGO (KGTV) – The Padres have filled two important spots on new manager Craig Stammen’s staff, hiring Randy Knorr as the new bench coach and Steven Souza Jr. as the team’s hitting coach.
Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune reported on the hirings on Monday; the Padres have not officially announced the hirings.
Knorr, 57, replaces previous bench coach Brian Esposito, who is moving into an unspecified role within the Padres organization.
The 36-year-old Souza fills the hitting coach vacancy created when Victor Rodriguez joined the Houston Astros to become their hitting coach.
Stammen is familiar with both Knorr and Souza from his time with the Washington Nationals, the team he played for from 2009-2015.
Knorr was a bullpen coach for the Nationals in 2009 and later served the team’s bench coach from 2012-2015.
Knorr, who played for six teams during his MLB career from 1991-2001, was with the Nationals organization in 2025.
Souza, a big leaguer from 2014-2022, was with the Tampa Bay Rays organization in 2025. He was a teammate of Stammen’s on the Nationals in 2014.
The Padres have not yet hired a third base coach to replace Tim Leper, who left for the New York Mets.
