Mike Shildt’s coaching staff will have a new addition in 2025: A bench coach.

Brian Esposito will serve as Shildt’s right-hand man next season, ascending from his previous position as the Padres’ catching coach and game strategy assistant.

The Padres did not employ a bench coach in 2024, choosing instead to divide those duties among the various coaches on staff, including Esposito.

The entire staff is returning outside major league field coordinator Ryan Barba, who is expected to remain in the organization in player development.

New deals for Shildt and pitching coach Ruben Niebla were announced last month as Padres President of Baseball Operations A.J. Preller placed an emphasis on continuity as the organization looks to build off a 93-win season, second-most in franchise history.

The 45-year-old Esposito is returning for his third season on the big-league staff and his fourth year in the organization.

He previously managed high Single-A Fort Wayne after spending the previous nine years coaching in the Pittsburgh Pirates organization.

The University of Connecticut product was a fifth-round pick by Boston in 2000 and played 13 seasons, progressing as high as the majors in 2007 with the St. Louis Cardinals (1 game) and in 2010 with the Houston Astros (2 games).

The rest of Shildt’s staff is as follows:

• Brian Esposito – Bench Coach
• Ruben Niebla – Pitching Coach
• Victor Rodriguez – Hitting Coach
• Ben Fritz – Bullpen Coach
• Tim Leiper – Third Base Coach, Infield & Base Running Instructor
• David Macias – First Base Coach, Outfield & Base Running Instructor
• Mike McCoy – Assistant Hitting Coach
• Pat O’Sullivan – Assistant Hitting Coach
• Peter Summerville – Game Planning & Coaching Assistant
• Heberto Andrade – Bullpen Catcher & Coaching Assistant
• Morgan Burkhart – Major League Coaching Assistant
• Allen Craig – Special Assistant, Major League Staff & Baseball Operations
• J. Ellis – Special Assistant, Major League Staff & Baseball Operations
• Craig Stammen – Special Assistant, Major League Staff & Baseball Operations
• Scott Stroud – Coaching Assistant
• Chris Apecechea – Coaching Assistant, Pitching