Vandergrift Native Warren Schaeffer Relying on Clint Hurdle for Help in Role as Rockies Interim Manager
PITTSBURGH — Warren Schaeffer used to attend games at PNC Park as a native of Vandergrift, some 30 miles from downtown Pittsburgh. He even played a WPIAL championship game at the Pirates’ stadium as a high schooler in 2002.
On Friday, the Greensburg Central Catholic graduate returned to the banks of the Allegheny River under much different circumstances.
Schaeffer, 40, was promoted from third base to interim manager in May after the Rockies dismissed Bud Black, who held the title for over eight seasons and reached the postseason twice.
With Schaeffer in charge, Colorado is in town for a weekend series at PNC Park.
“To be here in this ballpark with all the childhood memories coming here,” Schaeffer explained from the first base dugout ahead of Friday’s game. “Just the whole thing, the city, it’s home, man. There’s nothing better than home.”
Schaeffer inherited a disaster, to put things bluntly. At the time the Rockies decided to make a change at manager, they were off to a historically-bad 7-33 start to begin the season.
There have been some understandable growing pains, but the youthful Rockies have shown improvement of late. They took two of three from the Pirates at Coors Field earlier this month and have won seven of their last 11 games despite a shutout loss on Friday.
“Yeah, I’ve loved it,” Schaeffer said of the Rockies’ recent stretch. “They’ve embraced the adjustments that they need to make to be successful at this level. There are a lot of young guys that are working really hard.”
The job Schaeffer was tasked with would be hard enough as is, but especially for a first-year manager taking over midseason.
There’s no substitute for experience, and while Schaeffer managed in the minor-league prior to joining Black’s staff as third base coach for the 2023 season, nothing compares to managing at the game’s highest level.
Fortunately for Schaeffer, his top assistant has spent his entire adult life in professional baseball, including a couple stints as a big-league manager. It’s a name Pirates’ fans are quite familiar with.
The Rockies named Clint Hurdle hitting coach in April and promoted him to bench coach once Schaeffer was tabbed interim manager.
Hurdle managed the Rockies from 2002-09 and led them to the 2007 National League pennant. He later managed the Pirates from 2011-19 and is the only one this millennium to guide Pittsburgh to the postseason, doing so three straight seasons from 2013-15.
Hurdle’s experience has been invaluable for Schaeffer.
“Clint’s been great,” Schaeffer explained. “He’s helped me out tremendously with all the ins and outs of managing in the big leagues. There are some things that are similar managing in the minor leagues to the big leagues, but there’s a lot of things that you need help with if you haven’t done it before. He’s been covering my blind spots and showing me the way. I’m very thankful for that.”
Having grown up in the Pittsburgh area, Schaeffer, who resides in Freeport in the offseason, is well aware of the significant impact Hurdle had on the region during his tenure in the black and gold.
“He obviously was a huge part of this city with the big turnaround with the Pirates,” Schaeffer said. “Everybody’s thankful for him.”
The 68-year-old Hurdle is enjoying watching Schaeffer get more acclimated to his role from his spot on the Rockies’ bench.
“One of the biggest joys I’m having is watching a young man grow up in a situation and managing a young team through a very hard time and the energy he’s bringing and his ability to show up with a fresh face every day.”
The Rockies haven’t publicly announced their plans for manager in 2026 and beyond, but Schaeffer will continue his audition over the final five weeks of the season. Hurdle sees qualities that could continue to help Schaeffer if the interim tag was removed from his title.
“Tremendous energy, he knows the game, defensive-minded. He can tell you the hitting part was hard for him, but a strategist, he managed in the minor leagues so he had abilities there. He was a third base coach here, speed of the game, tempo.
“The pitching part of it is always tricky for anyone, working with a major-league bullpen. Good bullpens make managers look smart, bad bullpens make managers look not smart, but I love the energy. The preparation, the application, he wants to hear the coaches’ voices.”
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