Now I don't want to start this piece saying we got second place to the New York Mets, because Eric Chavez is not a runner up. Yet, Chavez was one of the Mets managerial finalists and he didn't get the job. So the Yankees did something they have not done all off season—they actually made move. So Chavez is hired as one of two assistant hitting coaches for the 2022 season; he completes a coaching staff that includes head hitting coach Dillon Lawson and former Met manager Luis Rojas as a fielding coach. So no we didn't get Showalter but maybe we got a bit more.
"Chavez, 44, who played third base for the Yankees, Oakland Athletics and Arizona Diamondbacks, is a six-time Gold Glove winner who reportedly was in the mix for Rojas' old job with the Mets, before they ultimately hired Showalter," reported ESPN.
Chavez brings with him baseball acumen and analytics which are keys to the kingdom, not just in New York but across the baseball industry. Before retiring from the game in 2014 and coming to the Yankees as an assistant hitting coach in 2022, Chavez served under Brian Cashman as a special assignment scout and under Los Angeles Angels GM Billy Eppler as a special assistant. His years in the GM office may have served him well to develop as a leader, but can he be effective as a hitting coach?
Hitting 260 homers in a 17-year major league career, Chavez played 171 games as Alex Rodriguez’s backup at third, batting .274/.338/.445 with 18 homers and 63 RBI. He also served as manager of the Triple-A Salt Lake Bees, an Angels affiliate, in late 2018. Sounds like he could bring some spark to a team that needs a new formula for success.
Fans and I took to Twitter after Showalter was signed by the Mets over the weekend. Many Met fans said we were sore losers and we needed to get over it. Maybe the hiring of a shiny new coaching staff headlined by Chavez is a good way to get over it. Now if they can be impactful and the players can respond with good situational hitting and hitting for average, maybe we'll have something to celebrate instead of rant.
--Suzie Pinstripe
BYB Senior Managing Editor
Twitter: @suzieprof
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