Coaches in Place

While the big question of who would be the Yankees next manager was answered a few weeks ago with the hiring of Joe Girardi, the coaching carousel has only made its complete stop now. The Yankees 2008 coaching staff has finally been announced with a mix of new and old faces. Girardi is obviously the manager and Kevin Long and Tony Pena have returned to their previous positions. Dave Eiland has been promoted from the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre pitching coach to the Yankees pitching coach, Rob Thomson is the bench coach, Bobby Meacham is the third base coach, and Mike Harkey is the new bullpen coach. The last two of these served under Girardi in 2006 with the Marlins. This seems to me to be the perfect mix of retaining the people who know the organization well, but still allowing Girardi to bring in his own people to make him feel comfortable. Ron Guidry may have been a personal favorite for what he did with the organization, but it’s hard to argue letting him go, Eiland just seems to know pitching better judging by the fantastic starting pitching seen in the Yankees minor league system (although a lot of that can be contributed to single A Tampa pitching coach Nardi Contreras). Larry Bowa will also be missed for the work ethic he instilled in the players, especially Robinson Cano, but Girardo should instill enough work ethic in his players to make up for it. For those who don’t know about the new coaches, Eiland was with the organization for six seasons and spent last September with the Yankees after the AAA season ended, he has a especially strong connection with the young pitchers who recently went through the minor league system. Kevin Long is entering his second season as hitting coach and has been greatly credited for Alex Rodriguez’s success last season. Thompson has served all throughout the Yankees system for the past 18 seasons. Pena is returning despite not being chosen for the Yankees vacant managerial spot. Both Meacham and Harkey are former Yankees players who served under Girardi in Florida and have served throughout baseball for many years. So while the Yankees on the field product is shaping up to look pretty similar to its 2007 counter part, the coaching staff certainly had a drastic make over from last season.