Joel Sherman is reporting that the Yankees are making a pitching coach change:
Larry Rothschild is being removed as #Yankees pitching coach. NYY will likely announce later today offically. @Buster_ESPN mentioned possible removal first.
— Joel Sherman (@Joelsherman1) October 28, 2019
There is a large contingent of Yankee fans that are rejoicing at the notion of a new pitching coach. I personally think it’s time for the Yankees to make a change there as well, but not because Rothschild was unsuccessful. Sometimes things stagnate if they don’t change, and I think that’s exactly what’s happened with the Yankees current breaking-ball-heavy pitching philosophy.
Since Rothschild was hired in 2011, here are the Yankees’ American League ranks in each pitching category:
By just about any metric, Rothschild has had a great deal of success with the Yankees. The majority of the current pitching staff are arms developed in our farm system, or pitchers we’ve acquired via trade. Rothschild has gotten the most out of the talent he has been given in my eyes. Some people will complain that Sonny Gray was terrible with NY, and then he left and found success etc. But for every Sonny Gray story, I’ll raise you a Chad Green or a Dellin Betances. Hell, even Luis Cessa has improved dramatically. He was shutting down guys in the ALCS this year. Who saw that coming?
Pitching coaches all have success and failure stories, and Rothschild has done a relatively decent job with the Yankees. I would liken Rothschild’s departure to Joe Girardi’s end with the Yankees. Both sides enjoyed a modicum of success, but it may be time to bring someone else in to see if they can lift them to the next level. Cheers, Larry.
So who will the next pitching coach be? Here’s my vote:
