WOW! KEVIN LONG'S ON THE MOVE...

Source: Elsa/Getty Images North America

Kevin Long ended up being with the Mets the last few years.  Then, there were rumors circling that when Joe Girardi was not asked back to manage the Yankees, and brass told all the teams they could interview their coaches, it was clear the Yanks were looking to perhaps upgrade their coaching staff... and many indications were a reunion with Kevin Long in some capacity. But that's not true...

The latest is Long just signed on with the Nationals.  He will be their hitting coach next season.  SNY has the story:

Photo: New York Daily News

"Former Mets hitting coach Kevin Long has been hired by the Nationals to serve in the same role, the team announced.

Long, whose contract expired this off-season, had been expected to leave the Mets once the team decided to hire Mickey Callaway to fill their managerial opening.

He will coach under new manager Dave Martinez..."

Oh well.

MATTINGLY COULD GET THAT MARLINS MANAGER GIG

Don Mattingly back with the Yankees as their hitting coach? Yup. We wrote about it when Jeana Bellezza made her wish list and Mattingly was on that list.  Read 5 BRILLIANT OPTIONS FOR YANKEE HITTING COACH for that, and remember something, we're not blind here at Bleeding Yankee Blue. 

We totally understand that Mattingly coming back to the Yanks to be hitting coach is a step down.  No matter, we love keeping our family intact and so, we thought it would be cool.  Nostalgic if you will.  Everyone needs to chill.

News today is Mattingly is the lead candidate to be the Marlins new skipper.  According to several sources, but we'll go with Jon Morosi of FOX Sports on this one:

Don Mattingly free to interview with #Marlins; team considers him leading candidate for managerial job, sources tell @Ken_Rosenthal and me.

— Jon Morosi (@jonmorosi) October 26, 2015

Now look, good managers are built when experience happens.  Plus, when you fill a clubhouse with veteran players, sometimes it's hard to keep them in line.  I never felt that Mattingly had an easy time in LA. 

Too many strong willed veterans.  I believe that's true with some of the Yankee teams in recent past too.  I believe a younger club with a veteran manager is a nice combination.  Look at the New York Mets for instance.  Look at Kevin Long, the hitting coach with the Mets. 

A perfect example. Some will say, "Why couldn't Long do that in the Bronx?" My opinion is there were too many veterans set in their ways in Yankeeland. No one was willing to adjust swings and tweaks. In the Mets organization, there are young and eager players... a different dynamic.  That could also work in Miami with Mattingly and that young team. We'll have to see if he gets the gig, but I think it would work!

Whatever the case, I hope Donnie gets it. 

Anyway... carry on.

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THIS IS WHAT HAPPENS WHEN I GET BORED

You know, as productive as this off season has been for the New York Yankees, I am still sitting here and wanting more. It's like eating the most tantalizing dinner but....you still want dessert. I still want something to just put me over the edge. So, as I sit here and wait for the Yankees to just give me that perfect nightcap, I am sitting here thinking about an ice cream sundae with all of the fix-ins.

I am growing restless. Really. Really....restless. The off season started with a bang. I was getting a rumor mill adrenaline rush in the beginning but now I have crashed. It's sad. I haven't had that same excitement in awhile now. In fact, I told Casey that I was so bored that I could think of 20 events that have entertained me more recently just by reminiscing about recent off season events. Of course, with that....I was told to write about them. He's good like that.

So Yankees, for the sake of all fans everywhere....please bring back the excitement so no one has to read Jeana's off season amusement EVER again.

1. Girl Scout Cookie Season is back! Well....it will be. The only reason this amused me was because someone at work started talking about it and our own Erica Morales has her very own girl scout and I get to read about Cookie posts, constantly. That being said, there are new cookies this year, read HERE. Get ready to throw away those New Years resolutions! So much for trying to behave. I guess I can just blame Erica.

2. Yankee baseball was over, so I got sucked into The Voice. Pharrell and Gwen Stefani took over as coaches but didn't make the finals. Adam Levine had 3 finalists but miraculously lost to Blake Shelton's sole finalist. I can only imagine how much gloating Blake did after all of that. Can we say upset AND lack of baseball desperation? PLEASE stop the insanity!

3. My softball team WON! Yes ladies and gentleman. Stop the presses. The team I have written about because we are SOOOOO bad actually won a game. We met at the mound like the 2009 Yankees and partied like we won the World Series. So for the season we went 1-17! What an accomplishment. Let's see if the new season we can go 2-16.

4. The Classic "Monkey Monkey Underpants" banter between myself and Erica Morales. Seriously, we are a little silly. Just a little. But that's ok because well....we are entertaining. Extra cool and brownie points if you can actually tell me where that comes from.

5. Katy Perry takes Halloween to the extreme. Seriously, I am easily amused but come on....dressing as a Cheeto for Halloween? I laughed, and then I cried from laughing so hard. Points for creativity. does anyone else see Lady Gaga when you see her face?

6. The waste of my very valuable taxpayers dollars on the Jodi Arias trial. They say cats have 9 lives, does this sentencing retrial also? I have to stop watching the news before I go bonkers. I feel more and more broke everyday. Read what I mean HERE.

7. Buh-bye Beantown! Jon Lester signs with the Cubs. Sayonara, Boston! It makes all of the "Jon Lester has loyalty to the Sox" debates I had so much sweeter.

8. The Yankees fire Kevin Long...and the Mets take our leftovers. I love it! Have fun with that Mets fans!

9. Speaking of Mets fans.... did you know that Mets are favored to win the World Series 12-1 over the Yankees at 18-1? It's TRUE! Ask my Mets friends. Want to know their credible evidence? A Vegas gambling prediction! Science in its finest form, folks.

10. New Years Eve snow in Arizona. Yup, that is not a typo, folks. We had a light dusting of snow in the Phoenix Metro area and when I woke up on New Years day I could see snow on the mountain ranges surrounding me. It was WEIRD! Blame global warming. This isn't just weird, it is EXTREMELY weird, folks. I thought I woke up back east.

11. The Celebrity Apprentice is back! Usually I don't care about this show or Donald Trump at all but hey....Johnny Damon is on and since he isn't stealing bases anymore like he did in the 2009 World Series, I would like to see him steal a victory from the rest of his competitors for his charity the Johnny Damon Foundation.

12. The holiday season is not complete without one (or several) appearances from the Peanuts! Nothing says Holidays to me like "A Charlie Brown Christmas" or "Happy New Year Charlie Brown!" It brings back a lot of memories and cures a lot of boredom due to baseball withdrawals.

13. Pedro Martinez wanted to be a Yankee! Of course, this comes right before his probable Hall of Fame Selection so timing is suspect but it's still funny. Read that HERE. Again, timing is suspect but I still got a good laugh out of it. I wonder how Boston fans feel. Hmmmm....

14. Football frenzy - The Dallas Cowboys win the Wild Card game. Am I in the Twilight Zone?! Pinch me, I must have been dreaming. I can't say I had much interest in this particular game but whether you think it was a bad call or not....how could you not laugh at some of the reactions on Facebook and Twitter?

15. Speaking of football frenzy - Rex Ryan finally gets the boot after a 4-12 season! I don't envy his position through all of this but as a Jets fan I have to say good riddance. It is time for a change. Here's hoping for next season. What a bad parting theme....but it's all I have for now.

16. Hey Kim - you can't break the Internet! You know, when I saw Kim Kardashian's butt and her quest to #breaktheinternet I laughed. I honestly do not understand the fascination with this woman and I never want to. Sorry Kim, as outrageous as you think your booty may be scientists landing a rover onto a flying comet deep in outer space foiled your plan.



17. For as long as I have been alive the Rockefeller Center tree lighting ceremony has always been a "must see" event for me. Watching on TV is not as enjoyable these days, but it gives me a little piece of home. It all comes full circle when Mariah Carey sings "All I Want for Christmas is You." Not this Christmas. That was horrible. Mariah, I still love your song but you couldn't hit those notes and I feel jipped!

18. Christmas with the family. I am still living in the Christmas Joy here. It's hard having your family on separate coasts, so having my mom with me on Christmas was the best gift a girl could get. Can we hit the rewind button? I want a repeat.

19. Christmas was special, and so was New Years. Just before the ball dropped and 2015 was officially here, I became a godmother. You can bet my godson is going to be the most spoiled and loved kid on the planet. I have never felt so trusted before with anything in my entire life.

20. The Max Scherzer and Scott Boras saga. Boras is still trying to convince teams that Scherzer is worth a contract near 200 million at 8 years. Hey Boras! The Yankees just got a lot younger. We do not want or need that kind of contract. I will make you a deal. I have a bridge I am selling. You may have heard of it...its called the Brooklyn Bridge! I will sell it to you for a good price. You interested? Call me!

So I am still waiting for one late present and Stephen Drew isn't exactly that!

I need another rush, a longer lasting sugar high. Other wise, who knows what other crazy things I may start reminiscing about. I am easily amused Yankees, so it won't take much. Just pretty please with sugar on top make something happen and fast!



 
 --Jeana Bellezza, BYB Senior Writer and Editor
Twitter: @NyPrincessJ  




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BEING A BASEBALL INSIDER MEANS RECYCLING OLD RANDOLPH STORIES...

I mean... you've got to be kidding me, right Jon Heyman?

Actually, this is from CBS Sports guy Sean d'Oliveira who wrote this:

"The Yankees recently interviewed former Mets manager Willie Randolph for a coaching position, reports CBSSports.com Baseball Insider Jon Heyman."

That was written 2 hours ago.

Interesting right? Bleeding Yankee Blue wrote this same story on December 6th, when it broke:

"There's a nugget... and I wanted to share it.

 The Yankees like 2 guys, both are coaches in the Yankees minor league system. One is James Rowson and you've heard his name in the mix with Marcus Thames and Dante Bichette when Kevin Long first left.  Then it got quiet. 

The other coach being considered is Jody Reed.

 

 As far as the first base coach, the Yankees interviewed Willie Randolph for the job."

That was in:  YANKEES MAY HAVE FOUND THEIR HITTING & 1ST BASE COACH

In other words, the story is old, a month old, which gives me the following thought about Jon Heyman and what he does...

He thinks baseball fans are just plain stupid, or he is desperate to get people "click happy" to read what he has... EVEN IF IT'S NOTHING!

I'm not here to hate on Heyman. I don't even know the man. I am suspicious though... what exactly do baseball insiders do?

BYB readers are smart... you remember we had it back in December. To Phil who sent me your note about the Heyman recycle piece... good looking out bro! Thank you.

To Jon Heyman... you're on my radar pal.

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YANKEES MAY HAVE FOUND THEIR HITTING & 1ST BASE COACH

Maybe at least. 

Look, as you know, we haven't heard much about a hitting coach for the Yankees.  What we have heard is that no one is too interested. 

Eric Hinske didn't want the gig, and just when you thought Raul Ibanez may be a guy that would be perfect for the role, he has a personal matter and pulled out of consideration for even the managers job of the Tampa Bay Rays.  My thinking was if he didn't get the Rays gig, he'd call the Yanks.  Now, with that personal matter in play, forget it.

Marcus Thames was mentioned as well at one point, but the Yankees are promoting him to assistant hitting coach. So the question is... who's the hitting coach?

There's a nugget... and I wanted to share it.

(In photo: James Rowson)
The Yankees like 2 guys, both are coaches in the Yankees minor league system. One is James Rowson and you've heard his name in the mix with Marcus Thames and Dante Bichette when Kevin Long first left.  Then it got quiet. 

(In photo: Jody Reed)
The other coach being considered is Jody Reed.

As far as the first base coach, the Yankees interviewed Willie Randolph for the job.

How do you like 'dem apples?

If anything happens with Reed, Rowson and Randolph (sounds like a law firm), we will bring you the news on BYB. 

Nice nugget, huh?

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IF I'M BRIAN McCANN, I'M CALLING KEVIN LONG 'IRRELEVANT'

Quick note, just because this Kevin Long gnat annoys me now more than ever...

Let me ask you something. If a former coach was talking about me after he was fired from the organization for not doing his job, I'd walk over to Queens and bitch slap him down the steps of the 7 train.  In other words, who cares what Kevin Long has to say about Brian McCann's hitting problems after the fact.

Here's a question... WHERE THE HELL WERE YOU ALL SEASON TO HELP HIM?

Kevin Long apparently shot his mouth off about Brian McCann and his hitting woes.  Long said that it's about "... trying to maintain a little bit more consistency... I think it's common that the first time you come into an organization after you sign a big contract I think it plays a little more difficult than it might seem. In Curtis' (Granderson's) case that probably played into it. I know Brian McCann, as the season progressed, he got better and more comfortable."

No offense, but no shit. About the consistency part...

McCann will have a big season in 2015. But it's more than a big contract, much more. How about we blame the fact that Brian had to learn an entire NEW pitching staff, just to have to learn a whole new one once the first rotation went down with injury halfway through the season. That's a tough gig.  That's pressure.

I have no doubt McCann will have a better season in 2015, but it's not Long's place to have it all figured out and publicly dissect McCann for the fans.  The fans are smart... we know what happened.

Whatever man... That just ticked me off.  Go away Long, go help the Mets try and hit. That's your job now.

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THE HITTING COACH WILD CARD... OZZIE GUILLEN

You want a Bronx Zoo like the the 1970's with disagreements in the dugout? The Yanks should reach out to Ozzie Guilllen and see if he wants to sit with the Yankee players and break down their swings.  I'm joking of course... kind of.  I mean look, the likelihood of Guillen becoming the hitting coach in the Bronx is probably very tiny... but could you imagine that clubhouse?

There has been chatter about Guillen perhaps going to assist Joe Maddon wherever he goes, and that would probably be a good fit, both are quite zany, but smart baseball me. Anyway,  this is what Ozzie told the Chicago Sun Times:

"I’ve managed before. Economically, I’m pretty good. I just want to be back in the game...I’m not bigger than the game... There’s a lot of managers who went back to coaching after they were managers. That doesn’t mean anything. I’m not better than them. Whoever thinks I can help, if they ask me, I don’t mind doing it."

Look, stranger things have happened. There is clearly this willingness to want to come back to baseball in an assistant coach capacity. "I'm not bigger than the game." I like that. The Yanks would be fools to NOT interview Ozzie just to see how serious and committed he is. Lord knows there is nothing going on in Yankeeland and they want someone who is a step up from Kevin Long.

They should at least chat with him if nothing else.  It could be kind of fun... and a total wild card too.

Carry on...

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KEVIN LONG NOW WORKS FOR THE METS

Well look, you knew Kevin Long wasn't going to be out of a job long.  Over all, he is a decent hitting coach. The problem with Long in my opinion was the hitters either didn't trust him or the veterans didn't want to listen to him.  He couldn't change stale routines and offer constructive advice that would translate to wins.  It's my opinion that he became too close to these guys.  He almost seemed like he was one of the players and not an instructor.  Again, that's my take, you may have yours.

The news is he is now the hitting coach for the New York Mets.  According to Hardball Talk, "Kevin Long has signed on with the Mets to fill the same role.

For the majority of Long’s tenure the Yankees had one of the elite offenses in baseball and overall from 2007-2014 they scored MLB’s second-most runs, but the lineup fell apart during the past two seasons due to aging and injuries."

Look, there were positive reviews.  Chris Young loved him when he came from the Mets batting .205 and suddenly he was a spark plug on the Yankees.  You could give Long alittle credit there, but I'd also give some credit to a change of scenery and the willingness to try anything to improve on Young's part.

And don't forget... Curtis Granderson was reinvented by Long and he did some good things for the Yanks when he figured his swing out.  I gave credit to Long when that happened... after all, I'm not a hater.

But that's the news... Long is with the Mets, and we Yankee fans are still wondering... who will the Yankee hitting coach be?





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SILENCE ON A HITTING COACH COULD MEAN TINO

Yankees Universe is still waiting on the front office’s decision on the hitting coach decision. After the Boston Red Sox grabbed Chili Davis off the market, and second thoughts on Dave Magadan, the pool of candidates has grown wide open. When the Yankees first let Kevin Long go, rumors swirled, and Tino Martinez was near the top of the list. Bob Klapisch reported, days after the Long firing, the Tino was not in consideration. Now that plans A and B have gone up in smoke, who knows?

Having had some experience at the position with the Florida Marlins, and the love fest this past season with the Yankees and his new plaque in Monument Park, Tino seems like a good fit. There is good reason to give him serious consideration. He has a long history of hitting well with the Yankees, and with keeping players accountable.

While we do not condone everything he did that caused his exit from the Marlins organization, it would be good to see some fire in the Yankees clubhouse. His record of accountability is well-known, chewing fellow players out for not running hard down the baseline or not going all out in the field. After the 2014 season, I think we are all a little tired of seeing the hitters lacking drive. Tino's personality may be the perfect fit.

Expect the Yankees to make an announcement in the next few days, and we will see how the new coaches shape up. If the Yankees are smart, Tino should at least get a call back.

--Ike Dimitriadis, BYB Senior Staff Writer
Twitter: @KingAgamemnon
My blog is: Shots from Murderer's Row





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GUESS WHAT HITTING COACH THE SOX ARE INTERESTED IN?

If Kevin Long went to the Red Sox, would you be mad? Would you call him a traitor? Would you care?

There is talk that the Red Sox like Kevin Long and are interested in bringing him to Beantown to be their hitting coach.  Pete Abraham of the Boston Globe has that Tweet:

#RedSox do have an interest in former #Yankees coach Kevin Long.
— Pete Abraham (@PeteAbe) October 13, 2014

Then Abraham tweeted this today, and included Chili Davis in it, a guy the Yankees are looking at as a possible hitting coach candidate.  Notice what Pete wrote about Kevin Long in there as well:

Told #RedSox have received permission to interview Chili Davis for their hitting coach position. Have spoken to K. Long and B. Mueller.
— Pete Abraham (@PeteAbe) October 15, 2014

So, what do you make of that?  Now look, we have all ripped on Long pretty good all season.  I mean, it appeared that the guy did nothing to try and improve the lack of hitting and run scoring for the New York Yankees.  I was taken back by one thing that Brian Cashman said in his recent interview with Michael Kay about Long last week.  He suggested that Long “did all he could do”.  I find that to be a cop out.

If Long actually did his job, you would have seen broken routines and new life.  Sure, it would have taken alittle time, but BYB and other blogs like Greedy Pinstripes had stated pretty damn early that the guy needed to open his eyes and work with the players.  If he actually did, there would have been improvement. You wanna know how I know?

Because when a guy named Chris Young showed up to the Bronx, he was batting .205.  That changed when he was desperate enough to open his ears to Kevin Long.  Long got through to Young, but didn’t with the veterans of the Yankee staff which means only 1 thing to me… his ideas and suggestions either weren’t working, or the veterans on the team did not trust him enough to change.  That’s not good.

Whatever the case… Long’s gone and apparently on the Red Sox radar.  Look, if Long goes there and keeps it in the realm of what he did in New York this season, I’m all for it.  But that won’t happen.  Kevin Long has been exposed, and so it's my theory that if he does go to Beantown, look for a new and improved Kevin Long. A Long hell bent on proving to Yankeeland that the Offense woes of 2014 were all the fault of the hitters and NOT the hitting coach.  Let’s hope we’re right about Long and the guy offers nothing in Boston.

We’ll see what happens…


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