The reigning Pacific Coast League champion Oklahoma City Dodgers, a Triple-A affiliate of the Los Angeles Dodgers, announced their coaching staff for the 2024 Minor League season and are once again being led by manager Travis Barbary, who is in his fifth year at the helm.
The rest of the Oklahoma City coaching staff from 2023 has also transitioned over to this season. Returning are hitting coach Manny Burriss, pitching coaches Justin DeFratus and Doug Mathis, and bench coach Chris Gutierrez.
Both DeFratus and Burriss return for their fourth year as members of the OKC Dodgers staff, while Mathis and Gutierrez return for their second year, respectively, in roles they filled last season.
With 30 years of combined experience as a player, staff member, and coach in the Dodgers organization, Barbary returns to his managerial role with OKC after leading the team to a 90-58 record in 2023 and a first-place finish in the Triple-A West East Division. Barbary guided Oklahoma City to their first league championship since 1996.
It was a marked improvement across the board for his ballclub from where they were in 2022. OKC won six more games, secured a first-place finish in the division after back-to-back years of being in second, and won the aforementioned Pacific Coast League championship.
Barbary has a combined record of 303-259 since beginning his tenure as Oklahoma City manager in 2019. He is the second manager in the team’s Triple-A history to serve five consecutive seasons as manager and is tied for the second-most years managed by OKC overall.
As Oklahoma City’s hitting coach, Burriss helped the team finish among the top three in the PCL in runs scored in 2021 and 2022, which included a team-record 949 runs two seasons ago. Also in 2022, Oklahoma City led the Minors with a club-record 731 walks, which was also the most drawn by any Triple-A team since 2004.
A native of Washington, D.C., the former big leaguer has also been involved in the development of some of the Dodgers’ top prospects, including Pacific Coast League MVP Michael Busch.
Mathis and DeFratus both return after a successful 2023, which saw OKC lead the league in ERA, WHIP, opponent batting average, and strikeouts. Their return will be invaluable to the Oklahoma City pitching staff, which allowed the fewest runs and hits, second-fewest walks, and third-fewest home runs.
Since 2017, Mathis has coached in the Seattle Mariners organization for the Toronto Blue Jays’ Triple-A affiliate, and from 2020–2022, he was a member of the Texas Rangers staff, where he was the team’s bullpen coach in 2020 and co-pitching coach from 2021–2022.
DeFratus, 36, is in his fourth straight year as a member of the OKC coaching staff, but his second as a co-pitching coach after he was elevated last season. Before that, he was the team’s bullpen coach over the 2021–2022 seasons.
Gutierrez has been a coach in the Dodgers organization since 2018 and is back as Oklahoma City’s bench coach and third base coach for a second season. Before joining OKC, he spent the 2021–22 season in a similar role at Double-A Tulsa.
Chelsea Willette (lead athletic trainer), Griffin Boyte (athletic trainer), and Paul Fournier (performance coach) are also on the 2024 Oklahoma City Dodgers coaching staff. Assisting Fournier this season will be Taylor Miller.
Oklahoma City Dodgers coaches returning a positive outlook for prospects
It’s a positive development for the Dodgers organization that the OKC coaching staff remains intact, considering not only the Triple-A Championship year but, more importantly, a strong track record of developing prospects for the Major League club.
That should do wonders for the likes of Nick Frasso and River Ryan, and Burriss will have more opportunities to continue developing position players.