All of the Rays coaches were up for contract renewal, and all survived except one. Hitting coach Steve Henderson was not retained, despite team highs in runs, home runs and OBP.
If any is a slight surprise, it might be the return of pitching coach Jim Hickey. Most would say that the Rays pitching staff underperformed this year. But, Joe Maddon considers him “one of the best in the game” and that he shouldn’t be blamed for all that went wrong, according to the St. Petersburg Times.
As far as hitting coach goes, Executive Vice President Andrew Friedman doesn’t expect to name a replacement anytime soon. My personal preference? Beat the Chicago Cubs to the punch and hire Hall of Famer Ryne Sandberg to come in and work with the hitters. He’s touted as an up-and-coming manager and is most likely itching to get back to the big leagues after spending the past three seasons in A and AA ball.
For more on the Rays, visit my blog, http://raysallday.com/.
