The New York Yankees’ unprecedented offensive challenges of the 2023 season forced the front office to pull off bold and strong moves. For the very first time in his 26-year-long general manager tenure, Brian Cashman fired a personnel mid-season. During the All-Star break, the Bombers sacked hitting coach Dillon Lawson.
Subsequently, former MLB baseman and analyst Sean Casey came in as interim hitting coach. For a person with no prior coaching experience, Casey did a decent job. However, the numbers remained largely indifferent. Thus, with Casey not returning for the 2024 season, as he confirmed earlier, the Yanks seem to have found their next man.
Yankees Strongly Rooting For James Rowson As Team’s Next Hitting Coach!
Sean Casey did the best he could to find answers to the Yankee hitters’ struggle in 2023. With negligible coaching experience and a lack of analytics understanding, Casey faced a lot of challenges. But he used his baseball IQ and player feedback to help them recover to the best of his ability. Having said that, despite good work, Casey has decided to discontinue as the team’s hitting coach in the near future. In his podcast episode, Sean confirmed that due to family reasons, he cannot extend his stay in the Bronx. While he loved being a coach of a talented bunch, the timing isn’t right for him now. That forced the Yankees to expand their search for a new hitting coach for the seventh time in the past eight years.
Meanwhile, rumors suggest that the Yankees are strongly considering Detroit Tigers assistant hitting coach James Rowson for the new role. Rowson has extensive coaching experience as he served over four teams in the past, including the Yanks. James served as Bombers minor league hitting coordinator from 2008-2011 and then again from 2014-2016, wherein he worked with Aaron Judge. In the big leagues, he worked for the Chicago Cubs, Miami Marlins, Minnesota Twins, and Detroit Tigers. Moreover, as per Joel Sherman, the front office has already approached Rowson to take the role of the club’s hitting coach. Having said that, the Yanks are not in any kind of rush. They are expected to interview a couple of more options before reaching a consensus on a single name.
Reports: Yanks Lose Bench Coach To Mets!
New York Yankees bench coach Carlos Mendoza is ready to take a huge leap in his coaching career. As soon as the off-season began, Mendoza interviewed with multiple teams for the role of manager. Moreover, if recent rumors are to be believed, Carlos shook hands with the New York Mets. Mets recently fired their manager, and the new president of baseball operations, David Stearns, is determined to overhaul the leadership of the franchise.
Carlos Mendoza has been with the New York Yankees since 2009. Initially, he worked in minor leagues before eventually getting promoted to bench coach in 2019. He served alongside Aaron Boone and even took charge this year when Boone faced suspensions. However, Mendoza’s ambitions will keep him away from the Bronx for the foreseeable future. With that, the Yanks have a new vacant spot to fill ahead of the crucial 2024 season.