SF Giants reportedly lose pitching voice to Toronto Blue Jays

The SF Giants have another departure on the pitching side this offseason. Pitching coordinator Justin Lehr is reportedly joining the Toronto Blue Jays organization to oversee minor league pitching according to Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.

SF Giants reportedly lose pitching voice to Toronto Blue Jays

Davidi notes that an official title has not been determined yet. I suppose it is a good sign that so many of the Giants' personnel on the pitching side have been in demand. That seemingly started with Ethan Katz joining the Chicago White Sox as the pitching coach a few seasons ago.

Not long after, both Brian Bannister and Andrew Bailey joined the White Sox and Boston Red Sox, respectively. Plus, Matt Daniels, who had been the team's coordinator of pitching sciences, departed the organization in 2023.

That is a lot of pitching acumen to lose. It would be nice if they could replace some of that skill set. Perhaps, that is one area that new pitching coach J.P. Martinez will look to upgrade.

At the very least, he will be working without Justin Lehr. Before he became a coach, Lehr was an eighth-round pick by the Oakland A's in the 1999 draft out of the University of Southern California. The right-handed hurler appeared in parts of four seasons in the majors. He pitched for the A's, Milwaukee Brewers, and Cincinnati Reds.

Lehr's final stint on a major league mound came in 2009 but he did continue to pitch in the minors for a couple more seasons before hanging up his cleats for good in 2012. Overall, he posted a 5.34 ERA in 77 career outings. His best season came in 2005 when he pitched to a 3.89 ERA with 23 strikeouts and 18 walks in 34.2 innings for the Brewers.

Since then, Lehr worked as a scout for the Kansas City Royals and Houston Astros. He originally joined the Giants organization as a rehab pitching coordinator but his scope was widened after two seasons to include serving as a pitching coordinator on the player development side. The veteran coach will now join the Blue Jays organization in a role where he has a good bit of experience.