Rudy Jaramillo [ha-da-MEE-yoh] has been the hitting coach of the Texas Rangers since 1994. In this day and age when coaches are hired and fired every couple of months and seem to be a dime a dozen, Jaramillo has been a mainstay with the Rangers. Ron Washington is the fourth manager that he has coached under during his stint with the Rangers, and his place on this team is not in jeopardy.

Jaramillo has watched players like Michael Young, Hank Blalock, Mark Teixeira, Jeff Bagwell, Juan Gonzalez, and Ivan “Pudge” Rodriguez come from under his tutelage to become stars.

In 2004, when the Mets were looking for a manager, GM Omar Minaya (who is bilingual like Jaramillo) interviewed the hitting coach for the position. The decision came down to Jaramillo and Willie Randolph, but Randolph eventually got the job. Guess which bilingual Mets GM is thinking again while he also thinks about how is job is in jeopardy?

But this year is perhaps the best example of Rudy’s superb job as Rangers’ hitting coach. Josh Hamilton – we all know the story by now – is a surefire All-Star and has learned so much under Jaramillo that he is also seriously threatening for a bid at the Triple Crown. David Murphy, who came over from the Red Sox in the deal for Eric Gagne, has also become a star in Arlington. And guess who is in the background smirking? That’s right. I’ll even give you one better. You’ve heard of Milton Bradley, right? Yeah, that Milton Bradley – the guy who was joining his sixth team in seven years when he walked into the clubhouse in Texas last year. And now, Bradley is headed to New York for the All-Star game as the game’s starting designated hitter. Coincidence? Probably not.