Yankees Fire Hitting Coach Dillon Lawson Mid-Season
NEW YORK — The New York Yankees made a surprising move on Sunday, dismissing hitting coach Dillon Lawson following their 7-4 loss to the Chicago Cubs at Yankee Stadium. This marked the first time in Brian Cashman’s more than two-decade tenure as the Yankees’ general manager that a coach was let go during the season.
Despite Cashman’s usual belief in evaluating performances over a full 162-game season, the Yankees’ consistently poor offensive performance prompted the decision. The team has struggled to rank near the bottom of the league in various offensive categories.
Cashman stated, “I came up in an organization that made changes in-season constantly. It’s not something I’ve gravitated to in my tenure as general manager. But at the same time, when you feel like you have to do that, then you do it and you face it, full-bore.”
Lawson’s replacement will be an external candidate, as per Cashman. However, assistant hitting coaches Casey Dykes and Brad Wilkerson will remain in their current roles. Cashman has been compiling an internal list of potential candidates and aims to announce a hire before the start of the second half of the regular season.
Cashman added, “There’s an opportunity here. I believe that we do have more than capable players to find higher ground than we found in the first half. I’m looking for a unique personality that will blend and connect with that group of players, as well as some of the players that I currently have on the injured list.”
Cashman had a discussion with managing general partner Hal Steinbrenner on Saturday, who agreed with the decision for change. The Yankees’ 3-0 loss to the Cubs on Friday may have represented a final tipping point, as they were held to just one hit over eight innings by a struggling pitcher.
With a 49-42 record, the Yankees head into the All-Star break in fourth place in the American League East, eight games behind the division-leading Tampa Bay Rays. The team ranks near the bottom of the league in batting average, hits, and on-base percentage.
Furthermore, the team’s offensive struggles worsened with outfielder Aaron Judge’s absence due to a right big toe sprain. The Yankees have gone 14-17 since Judge’s injury, owning the lowest batting average, lowest on-base percentage, and third-fewest runs scored in the Majors during that span.
Cashman concluded, “Since I’ve been here, we’ve had pretty consistently high levels of offensive production. This year has been a completely different story. Ultimately, the end results are not that Yankees DNA that we’re used to seeing.”
Lawson, 38, served as the Yankees’ hitting coach for just three seasons. Prior to his time with the Yankees, Lawson spent two seasons in the Houston Astros organization as a hitting coach in their minor league system.
Cashman expressed confidence in Lawson’s abilities, stating, “I don’t think that Dillon can’t be a Major League coach with consistent success. I think this is part of the growing process and the learning curve. We still think the world of him and we know what his capabilities are, but I just think at this time and place, we’re best served moving forward with a change.”