"Watching the club it had become apparent to me that we had reached the point that a change was necessary," Zduriencik said. "I appreciate Howard Johnson's professionalism and work ethic, but we simply were not getting the results that we expect and require.
"I have had the opportunity to observe Edgar over the past several years at Spring Training and working with our young hitters in the minor leagues. He is passionate and knowledgeable about hitting and understands the work that needs to be done to be successful as a big league hitter. His resume, desire to contribute at this time and ability to convey complex information about hitting is what drew us to this decision.