#OldFriend Chris Gimenez has decided to retire. He will join the Dodgers coaching staff as a Game Planning Coach.

 

 

https://twitter.com/jorgecastillo/status/1067905613491912705 

 

 

Aaron Bates had a cup of coffee with the Red Sox in 2009. He played for the Rochester Red Wings in 2011 and part of 2012. 

Taking over former Twins minor leaguer Dan Lehmann's old job... 

 

In non-former Twins news, the Dodgers' hiring of Robert Van Scoyoc. He's one of the guys behind JD Martinez's swing turnaround. Never played above college ball. Was a Dodger consultant for a few years before becoming the Diamondbacks' hitting strategist in 2018. Now the head hitting coach for the Dodgers. 

 

Baseball has rapidly become more like football in that you no longer need a professional playing pedigree to be considered for these positions. You just have to show you know a lot and can apply that knowledge to help players improve. It's weird how multiple organizations started grabbing everyone up this offseason -- the industry is like some weird domino-musical chairs-copycat when it comes to new ideas. 

So is Parker Hageman gonna throw his hat in the ring and become a scout or coach?

 

He seems pretty good at finding players weaknesses and video analysis.

Edited November 28, 20187 yr by Brandon

There goes one of our bullpen opions...

I always thought Doug Bernier would be a good coaching choice. As well as Ron Comer who is enjoying broadcasting in Chicago. I know Jason Bartlett and Juan Rincon both expressed thoughts of coaching upon retirement. Not that former Twins need to come back to the Twins (although the Twins do have a lot of former Twins as special assistants).

 

Baseball has rapidly become more like football in that you no longer need a professional playing pedigree to be considered for these positions.

There's really never been that much of a discrepancy between sports if you consider college football the equivalent, or at least near-equivalent, of minor-league baseball...which one should (IMO) with regard to coaching qualifications. A very, very high percentage of NFL staffs consist of people with NFL or college playing experience...just like a very high percentage of MLB staffs consist of guys with MLB or MiLB playing experience.

 

Meanwhile, MLB is probably already ahead of the NFL in willingness to consider candidates with no "post-high school" playing background.

There's really never been that much of a discrepancy between sports if you consider college football the equivalent, or at least near-equivalent, of minor-league baseball

 

 

I wouldn't.

 

For starters, the MLB clubs contract the hirings for the minor league staff. NFL teams do not any influence college coaching decisions. College football has been the place to incubate a lot of the ideas because of that freedom -- not because they have to answer to central office that is dictating philosophies. 

 

As of 2014, MLB had 83% of their managers with MLB experience (and 100% had pro experience). The NFL had 6 of 32 teams (19%) with an NFL experience. In 2009, the Chiefs' Todd Haley had no football playing experience *prior* to high school. Even with all the recent no professional experience coaches hired in the MLB, I don't know if we will see a manager without pro experience in the next 3-5 years. True, the overall coaching staff of NFL teams have been mixed with former NFL players but the NFL was first to embrace specialization (when MLB was still hiring a manager's drinking buddy for his pitching and hitting coach) which required people to be organized and analytical. Not to mention, there are 22 coaches on the Vikings staff. Because of the volume you can have a balance of voices from inside and outside the game.

 

It's only over the last few years that MLB has expanded the responsibilities and added more coaches to the staff that need to be hyperfocused on certain aspects of their trades, not be some general "back when I played and went through a slump..." type of coach. College baseball began to become what college football is -- an area where you can embrace new ideas and techniques, particularly on the development side of the game when a player's development timeline is at a premium. With more money going into the club side of baseball -- professionalizing the amateur ranks of baseball -- you have the formation of think tanks like Driveline Baseball that can act as the minor leagues for coaching staffs. 

 

So with the expanded coaching staffs and the recognition that it might be better to start having voices that are not the same pro experience/lifer coaches -- who were stuck in the prior development mindset loop -- that front offices began to incorporate more of the ideas that came from outside professional baseball.  

 

I always thought Doug Bernier would be a good coaching choice. As well as Ron Comer who is enjoying broadcasting in Chicago. I know Jason Bartlett and Juan Rincon both expressed thoughts of coaching upon retirement. Not that former Twins need to come back to the Twins (although the Twins do have a lot of former Twins as special assistants).

I thought Barlett retired, in part, because he didn't want that travel schedule anymore. Maybe I remember it wrong, though.

Awesome gig for Gimenez

 

There goes one of our bullpen opions...

You took the words right out of my mouth! But at least we have Astudillo for mop-up duty.

 

 

I always thought Doug Bernier would be a good coaching choice. As well as Ron Comer who is enjoying broadcasting in Chicago. I know Jason Bartlett and Juan Rincon both expressed thoughts of coaching upon retirement. Not that former Twins need to come back to the Twins (although the Twins do have a lot of former Twins as special assistants).

I think Bernier would probably make a good coach too. Something about bouncing around the minor leagues for most of your adult life --- with the occasional big league promotion --- gives a player a special set of skills.