Tigers Part Ways With Hitting Coach in Offseason Staff Shakeup
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The Detroit Tigers have an intriguing offseason ahead of them, and one of the major discussion points heading into 2026 will be how they handle their coaching staff.
Following another brutal postseason loss, they now have decisions to make on who they wish to retain from the staff, and who it may be better to let go of and find a replacement for.
One of the spots that has caused some concern is with the hitting coach group, with three names among the bunch being Keith Beauregard, Michael Brdar and assistant hitting coach Lance Zawadzki.
With three people in the room working on one component, it was difficult to see how many times the Tigers struck out this season, having the fifth most in the MLB at 1,454.
So, it was crucial for them in the coming weeks to analyze this and find a better way to run things, and an early change is set to be made. According to a report from Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press, hitting coach Keith Beauregard will not return to Detroit for the 2026 season and will look to pursue other opportunities instead.
#Tigers hitting coach Keith Beauregard won't return to coaching staff in 2026 season https://t.co/0RO6TSZBQn
— Evan Petzold (@EvanPetzold) October 29, 2025
What is the Latest Update on Beauregard Not Returning for 2026?
In the corresponding article from Petzold, he noted the following bits of information regarding Beauregard leaving and the current decisions to make on the hitting coach staff:
"Keith Beauregard won't return to the Tigers in the 2026 season, according to multiple people with knowledge of the situation granted anonymity because the Tigers haven't announced any coaching staff changes."
"All three hitting coaches were on contracts that expired after the 2025 season. Although Beauregard decided to leave, hitting coach Michael Brdar and assistant hitting coach Lance Zawadzki could return to the coaching staff in 2026."
With none of the three having contracts that ran beyond 2025, it will be interesting to see how the Tigers handle this situation prior to 2026.
Will they look to clean house and start with a new candidate from an internal or external source, or will they keep one of the other two coaches who worked on the staff already and see if they can improve the ceiling?
It will all come down to their decision-making and how they view the two internal coaches, but frankly, with how often the team was striking out over the course of 2025, it may be beneficial to just move into new territory and see if another coach could provide some better insight.
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Jeremy Trottier started his writing journey with WBLZ Media, and has worked through multiple publications with 247Sports, USA Today, Fansided, SBNation and others. He is an avid fan of motorsports and most sports in general, and has completed a degree in sports management to further understand the sports industry. During his time with sports media, he has been credentialed for coverage of Boston College sports, and can often be found attending their football and basketball games as well as expected coverage of their men’s soccer team in the near future. Sports are a large part of his life and career, as he looks to pursue a full time role within the industry someday.