Terry Francona is taking a familiar piece of Cleveland’s pitching machine with him to Cincinnati.
Joe Torres, a longtime Guardians pitching coach who helped shape several of the organization’s young arms, is leaving to become the Reds’ major league pitching coach, the team announced in a post on social media. He replaces Derek Johnson.
Torres, 43, is reuniting with Francona, who managed the Guardians for 11 seasons before stepping down after the 2023 season. For Cleveland, the move creates a major opening on Stephen Vogt’s staff and strips away one of the voices most closely tied to the club’s recent run of pitching development.
Over 10 seasons in the organization, Torres spent the last five on the major league staff with pitching coach Carl Willis. In that span, he worked with pitchers such as Tanner Bibee, Gavin Williams, Hunter Gaddis, Joey Cantillo and Tim Herrin.
Cleveland’s track record on the mound during Torres’ time on the big-league staff was strong. The Guardians finished in the top 10 in ERA in each of his five seasons there, placing sixth, ninth, third and fourth from 2022 through 2025. The club also won three American League Central titles in that stretch.
The numbers got even sharper in the last two seasons. Guardians pitchers posted the American League’s second-lowest ERA in both 2024 and 2025, and their combined 3.65 ERA over those two years led the AL and ranked second in the majors.
Torres’ impact wasn’t limited to the major league clubhouse. Before joining Francona’s staff, he spent two seasons as Cleveland’s pitching coordinator from 2020-21, helping shape pitching philosophies, player development systems and communication standards across the minor league system.
He also served as a pitching coach at the organization’s Arizona Complex League affiliate, Low-A Lake County and Lynchburg.
A former first-round pick, Torres was selected 10th overall by the Anaheim Angels in 2000. The left-hander pitched professionally for 13 seasons across five organizations.
Cleveland now has to fill the opening alongside Willis, who is returning for 2027. Chris Antonetti recently pointed to Willis’ importance to the organization and its pitchers.
“He cares deeply about the relationships he has with each pitcher in the organization,” Antonetti said. “He cares a lot about the organization. He’s given a ton to this organization and he is insanely competitive and wants to win a World Series.”
At the Guardians’ postseason wrap-up last month, Antonetti also acknowledged that coaching changes were possible.
“This time of year, there’s going to be the inevitable permission requests, but as we’re sitting here today, we expect the coaching staff to be back,” Antonetti said.
Now, with Torres headed to Cincinnati, Cleveland’s pitching leadership group has another important hole to patch.
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Guardians Lose Another Pitching Voice As Francona Reunites With Familiar Staffer
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