The New York Yankees have hired Sean Casey and Andy Pettite. The former All-Stars join the team with the hopes of adding a spark to their middling ball club. The Yankees’ most recent additions to their coaching staff in the middle of the season are uncommon. Although their roles are quite different with one working as an advisor with the team has been loosely defined, he will certainly contribute to the team’s core of strong pitching. He most recently served as the pitching coach for Team USA in the 2023 World Baseball Classic. The other hire has no official coaching experience as takes over as the Yankees hitting coach after working as an analyst on MLB Network.
Players who are former All-Stars know how to play the game. There’s no disputing that. But that doesn’t always mean that they know how to coach the game. Take a look at Barry Bonds for example. He put up some of the most prolific (albeit asterisk-riddled) offensive numbers in the history of the game. His game didn’t translate well as the Miami Marlins hitting coach in 2016. It was so bad in fact that former team president David Samson described Bond’s coaching tenure “a complete disaster.” We’ll leave it at that.
On the flip side, there has been success in former All-Stars coaching. Frank Robinson was a fourteen-time All-Star and Hall of Fame player who had moderate coaching success with a few mediocre teams. Robinson even won AL Manager of the Year in 1989 for his work with the Baltimore Orioles. For the Yankees, they don’t need coaching greatness, they just need coaches to be able to get the most out of this underachieving team.
Former All-Stars Come to Help
Signalling For The Lefty Out Of The Pen
If there was a Hall Of Very Good, Andy Pettitte would definitely be enshrined inside. The three-time All-Star earned 256 wins and collected over 2,400 strikeouts over the course of his career. Pettitte is perhaps best known for his stellar postseason reputation. His 19 career playoff wins are the most all-time by a pitcher. Aaron Boone and the Yankees front office can only hope that Pettitte’s pedigree can inspire the team.
According to Bryan Hoch of MLB.com, Pettitte says that he still has plenty to learn about the game’s new direction. But taking an old-school approach might not be a bad thing for Pettitte.
Pettitte could perhaps be the best bet to help turn Nestor Cortes season around. Cortes has struggled so far in 2023 as he remains on the injured list. The left-handed pitcher has failed to recapture his magical 2022 All-Star season. After suffering an injury in spring training, Cortes has failed to get back on track, sporting a 5.16 ERA. He has allowed ten home runs in 59 1/3 innings. Cortes recently threw his first rehab start for Double-A Somerset on July 23. The team hopes the lefty can rejoin the pitching staff in early August.
Another struggling pitcher is Luis Severino. He is another player who could benefit from Pettitte’s experience. Severino currently owns a 66 ERA+ of 66 with a 1.730 WHIP. The two-time All-Star has given up 72 hits in just 54 1/3 innings. After back-to-back All-Star appearances in 2017 and 2018, Severino has been plagued with injuries. Despite returning to form in an injury-shortened 2022 season, Severino has regressed to a below-replacement-level pitcher this season. Simply put, time is running out for him to figure things out.
There’s A New Mayor In Town
MLB Network is chock-full of former All-Stars who have gone from analyst to coach. And now Sean Casey is just the latest example of one of those players to take the plunge. The three-time All-Star took over as batting coach for the Yankees after the team fired Dillon Lawson during the All-Star break. Casey most certainly has his work cut out for him. The team is in the bottom third in runs scored per game. At 4.37 runs per game, the Yankees have scored over half a run less per game than in 2022. The rest of their offensive output isn’t exactly inspiring either. The Yankees are hitting just .230 as a team, which is the second lowest in the entire league.
While Casey doesn’t have any direct ties to the club, he has a close connection with manager Aaron Boone. The two were teammates for six seasons with the Cincinnati Reds. Boone appears to be quite confident in Casey’s ability to connect with the players and get the most out of them.
Aaron Boone says Sean Casey has already made an impact as the Yankees hitting coach pic.twitter.com/hfnwNqPebY
— Talkin’ Yanks (@TalkinYanks) July 19, 2023
Casey’s Player-Friendly Approach
Known as “The Mayor” during his playing days, Casey is as a player-friendly coach as they come. He was also one of the league’s best hitters in his day as well. Casey is a career .302 hitter and collected over 1,500 hits over his twelve years in the majors. That’s exactly the type of consistency the Yankees will look for as the team makes their postseason push.
Whether or not the Yankees make the playoffs, the team has already made changes that signal their desire for change. With the duo of former All-Stars added to their coaching ranks, the team is looking for experience to guide the roster through the dog days of summer. With a collection of struggling starting pitchers and a lineup that is underperforming, Pettitte and Casey certainly have their work cut out for them.
Photo Credit: © Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports
Players/managers Mentioned:
Barry Bonds, Frank Robinson, Andy Pettitte, Aaron Boone, Luis Severino, Sean Casey
