During the offseason, the Yankees had expressed interest in interviewing Sean Casey for the hitting coach role. However, this friend of Aaron Boone was unable to consider the offer then, as his girlfriend was undergoing cancer treatment. The Yankees’ new hitting coach was then committed to giving his full attention and availability to her.
Now that his girlfriend is reportedly cancer-free, Sean Casey has been able to accept the hitting coach position with the Yankees.
The hiring of Sean Casey may have come as a surprise to many, as he is seen as a significant departure from the analytical, launch-angle-focused approach favored by the previous hitting coach Dillon Lawson and other coaches in the organization. PinstripesNation was the first to break the news of the impending sacking of Lawson by the Yankees.
Sean Casey’s focus is on bats, not analytics
The specific areas Sean Casey plans to focus on are not yet clear, but given his background as a major league player with a career .302 batting average, he brings the much-needed emphasis on contact hitting that the Yankees currently require in their lineup.
Sean Casey has initially accepted the role for the remainder of the year, and a decision regarding his long-term commitment will be made later. However, there is no doubt that his presence will play a significant role in bringing the organization closer together.
Opinions on Lawson were divided within the organization, with the analytics proponents fully supporting him while others remained skeptical, particularly in recent times as the Yankees’ offense struggled after Aaron Judge’s injury on June 3.
Sean Casey, who shares a long-standing friendship with Aaron Boone from their time as teammates in the Reds infield many years ago, is a unifying figure whom everyone in the organization can support.
He will earn the respect of the struggling veterans, particularly Anthony Rizzo, Giancarlo Stanton, and DJ LeMahieu, who are in need of guidance and support.
Additionally, Sean Casey’s reputation as one of the friendliest and most amiable individuals in baseball adds to his appeal. This is a quality that I can personally vouch for, having worked alongside him at MLB Network since 2009.
“I think that’s where I’m going to connect with the guys, he told on a radio interview. “I understand you, man. I get it. Anything that you think you’re going through in a struggle, I’ve been there. Let’s talk. Let’s break it down. And let’s make sure we keep going forward.”
“So for me as a hitting coach … I didn’t like (hitting coaches) coming in and trying to change swings. That’s just not how it works. This isn’t high school. This is the big leagues. These guys are lions. They’re not little house cats. Going in, it’s getting to know guys, getting some rapport and building relationships.”
What do you think? Leave your comment below.
Something is strange with this hiring. Casey is the EXACT OPPOSITE of the Yanks organizational thinking with their over dependance on analytics. I don’t see Cashman making this move since he was the biggest proponent of analytics and had the most say. (remember firing the entire training staff and bring in new age training staff. How has that prevented injuries? LOL!!!!). I also don’t see Cashman firing the hitting coach or any coach that was strongly backed by analytics geeks. This really sounds like he was ordered to make this move from above and told to get a non analytics coach instead. Cashman is not flexible which is why he has stuck to the same approach while not getting to a Series (or even close except for 17) since 09 when he bought a team (Sabathia, Burnett, Tex, Swisher) back in the day when Yanks could outbid anyone.