Yankees fire hitting coach Lawson
The slumping New York Yankees fired hitting coach Dillon Lawson, the club announced Sunday.
Lawson was in his second season as New York's hitting coach. He'd been with the organization since 2018 and spent time as a minor-league hitting coordinator.
"It has been well-documented that I have been reluctant in the past to make changes to our coaching staff in the middle of a season," Yankees general manager Brian Cashman said, according to Chelsea Janes of the Washington Post.
"I am a big believer that successes and failures are collective efforts. However, I ultimately felt that a change was needed and that a new voice overseeing our hitting operations would give us the best chance to perform closer to our capabilities as we move forward into the second half of our season."
The Yankees narrowed the list of candidates to replace Lawson down to two and are expected to make a decision soon, a source told The Athletic's Brendan Kuty.
Brian Cashman said that the next hitting coach will come from outside the organization, and he wants the new person in place by the Colorado series coming out of the All-Star break.
— Bryan Hoch ⚾️ (@BryanHoch) July 9, 2023
The Yankees are strongly considering former player Sean Casey as their next hitting coach, reports the New York Post's Joel Sherman and Jon Heyman.
New York entered the All-Star break on a sour note, dropping a series at home to the Chicago Cubs.
The Yankees have struggled to produce with reigning AL MVP Aaron Judge on the shelf due to a torn ligament in his right big toe. They are tied for 18th in the league in runs scored, 28th in batting average, and 21st in OPS through 91 games.