Bengie Molina leaves Yadier Molina and the Cardinals to join Rangers

Jun 21, 2013; St. Louis, MO, USA; St. Louis Cardinals catcher Yadier Molina (4) talks with his brother Cardinals assistant hitting coach Bengie Molina (18) during the eighth inning against the Texas Rangers at Busch Stadium. The Rangers defeated the Cardinals 6-4. Mandatory Credit: Scott Rovak-USA TODAY Sports /

It has been less than a month since the Cardinals fell at the hands of the Boston Red Sox in the World Series, and now, a different American League team is stepping in to “break up a happy home” in St. Louis.

#Rangers hire Bengie Molina as first- base coach/catching instructor.
— Jeff Wilson (@JeffWilsonTXR) November 12, 2013

Jeff Wilson of the Fort-Worth Star-Telegram is reporting that former MLB catcher (and brother of current Cardinals catcher Yadier) Bengie Molina will be leaving the Cardinals staff for greener pastures with the Texas Rangers. In 2013, Bengie served as the assistant hitting coach (to

former slugger Mark McGwire

John Mabry) with St. Louis, but he is being “promoted” in Texas to become the full-time 1st base coach and catching instructor.

Obviously, it is a bit of an exaggeration to use the word “break-up” with Bengie and Yadier, as I’m sure the two men are very close, but this could be a steal for Texas. The Molina trio of brothers (including Jose) have been world-renowned for their defense, and if the Rangers can use Bengie’s expertise to transform whoever they sign (Brian McCann, Jarrod Saltalamacchia, etc.) into a better defender, that’s a coup.

I’m less sold on Molina becoming a 1st-base coach as he was a historically slow runner, but it’s one of the easiest jobs in baseball (reportedly), and I hope he enjoys his new home.

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