Jeff Banister is returning to the Pittsburgh Pirates.

General manager Neal Huntington announced Sunday that Banister, who had been a member of the Pirates organization for 29 years, has been hired as a special assistant, baseball operations.

Banister, 54, spent the past four seasons as the manager of the Texas Rangers, where he compiled a 325-313 record. He led the Rangers to back-to-back American League West Division titles in 2015 and 2016. He became the fourth manager since 1994 to win division titles in each of his first two seasons.

In Banister’s most recent role with the Pirates, he was bench coach from Aug. 10, 2010, through the 2014 season.

“Jeff Banister returns to the Pirates as a valuable resource, instructor and advisor for our front office, Major League team and player development system,” Huntington said in a statement. “Jeff brings a wealth of knowledge, experience and a passion for the Pirates back to the organization. We are thrilled to add a quality person and baseball man to help an organization that he loves get better.”

Jerry DiPaola is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Jerry at jdipaola@tribweb.com or via Twitter @JDiPaola_Trib.

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