The Houston Astros will be entering the 2024 season with a new manager: Joe Espada.

A longtime coach in the organization, Espada will be getting his first crack at managing an MLB team.

He will have a familiar face alongside him throughout the season.

“Omar López will be the bench coach on Astros manager Joe Espada’s staff, sources tell @TheAthletic. López has been in the Astros’ organization for 25 years, including 12 as a minor-league manager. He spent the last four seasons as the team’s first-base coach,” Astros insider Chandler Rome tweeted.

Lopez has been with the Astros since 2020, when he joined as a first-base coach.

Lopez, however, has years of experience in scouting roles and managing Minor League teams.

He originally joined the Astros organization in 1999 as a scout and hitting and infield instructor in Venezuela.

He worked in that role until 2007.

He is credited for recommending the signing of Jose Altuve when he was 16.

Then, from 2008 until 2019, Lopez managed some of the Astros’ minor league teams.

In between, he also accumulated managerial experience in Venezuela, leading Caribes de Anzoategui to the title in the 2014-15 campaign.

He was announced in 2022 as the manager of the Venezuelan national baseball team ahead of the 2023 World Baseball Classic.

He earned resounding victories in the pool stage against Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico, but fell to the United States in the quarterfinals.

All things considered, Lopez has fulfilled every role in baseball: player, scout, manager, coach, and more.

He knows the game really well and will be an asset for the organization alongside Espada.