John Mallee

HOUSTON –  The Houston Astros have hired John Mallee as hitting coach and added Dave Trembley to the coaching staff.

The team said Friday that Doug Brocail will return as pitching coach and the team is bringing back Dave Clark. General manager said the exact jobs for Trembley and Clark will be announced later.

The Astros have lost 100 games the last two seasons and have a new manager in Bo Porter.

Mallee, 43, was the hitting coach for the Miami Marlins while Trembley, 60, spent the last two seasons with the Atlanta Braves. In 2000 with the Cubs, Trembley managed Porter in Porter’s first season in the majors.

The Astros also named Quinton McCracken as their new director of player development and promoted Allen Rowin to be his assistant.

By John Burbridge

John Mallee’s unexpected summer vacation isn’t permanent after all. The Schereville man was removed as the Florida Marlins’ hitting coach on June 8, but is now back in major league baseball.

“It was great to finally get a chance to see my sons (Austin, 7, and Johnny, 12) play baseball this year,” Mallee said, “but I’m so happy to be back in the game.”

Mallee accepted the position of senior adviser for baseball operations with the Toronto Blue Jays late last week after weighing several offers from different teams.

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By John Burbridge

John Mallee’s team is doing all right, thank you.

“We went to Wisconsin Dells for a (Father’s Day weekend) tournament,” Mallee said of the NWI Shockers youth baseball program he founded. “Four out of our six teams came back with championships.”

Mallee’s other team — or former team — is in a bit of a quagmire. But don’t blame Mallee, at least not anymore.

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After another in an indoor batting cage. He asked the coach tossing pitches to move over slightly – in the direction of the door.

“He wanted the light in his eyes,” said John Mallee, the Florida Marlins’ batting coach and co-architect of Stanton’s potent stroke.

Giancarlo Cruz-Michael Stanton, his name crammed with nods to his mixed Irish, Puerto Rican and African American heritage, seeks the path of greatest resistance as a point of pride. He is suspicious of glamour and happiest working up a sweat. He’s the longshoreman carrying the most cargo, the roofer laying the most tiles, the carpenter pounding the most nails. He invents hitting drills for himself to ratchet up the degree of difficulty.

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PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. — Each morning for Hanley Ramirez starts off with a couple of hours of hitting in the cages.The Marlins’ three-time All-Star is a regular in the cages with hitting coach John Mallee, whom he greatly respects.

“Every day we’re working out, spending like two hours in the cage,” Ramirez said. “I love it.”

Determined to become more of the hitter he was in 2009 than ’10, Ramirez is starting to get his timing back. It’s been reflected in his performance, especially with his triple off Detroit’s Justin Verlander on Thursday night.

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