Blue Jays to hire Carlos Febles, formerly of the Red Sox, as the team's new 3B coach

As the 2023 regular season came to a close, long-time Blue Jays third base coach Luis Rivera announced that he was retiring. The 59-year-old had held the position on the coaching staff since all the way back in 2013.

With the big league staff already expecting a shakeup - Ross Atkins said changes were coming in his controversial press conference - Dave Hudgens was re-assigned elsewhere in the organization and, up until Tuesday, the third base coach position had not been filled.

Per Blue Jays insider Ben Nicholson-Smith, Rivera's replacement has officially been signed. Carlos Febles, who was only just recently let go from the Red Sox (where he filled the same position), is the Blue Jays' newest coach. The 47-year-old played second base for the Royals from 1998-2003 before joining the Red Sox organization as a coach in 2007.

Starting as hitting coach for the Lowell Spinners (Red Sox Class A Short Season affiliate) in 2007, Febles gradually progressed through the ranks before becoming manager of the Spinners in 2011. After just one year, he was promoted to manage the Greenville Drive (A-ball affiliate). He continued on an upward trajectory until the end of the 2017 season when he became the third base coach for the Red Sox.

With Boston, Febles filled multiple roles outside of his traditional base coach one. He also served as an infield instructor, but the Red Sox committed 102 errors in the infield last year, which was second-highest in the game. He, along with Dave Bush (pitching coach) were let go in the beginning of October.

While nobody is immune to mistakes, they become hard to avoid when you're on television on a national stage. Febles is perhaps best known among Blue Jays fans as the man responsible for one of the most epic game-ending double plays of the 2023 season.

It remains to be seen what other role(s) Febles will fill on the Blue Jays. Perhaps he will try his hand at infield instructor again, this time with a strong defensive unit than the one the Red Sox had in 2023.