Yankees Announce Aaron Boone's Coaching Staff
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- Aaron Boone's first coaching staff with the Yankees has been finalized.
The Yankees announced the staff Monday. It includes a handful of holdovers from Joe Girardi's staff last season. Larry Rothschild, 63, returns for his eighth season as pitching coach, Mike Harkey, 51, is back for his ninth year as bullpen coach, and Marcus Thames, 40, has been promoted from assistant hitting coach to hitting coach.
Former Indians and Padres catcher Josh Bard, 39, takes over for Rob Thomson as bench coach. Bard spent the last two seasons as the Dodgers' bullpen coach.
Reggie Willits, a former outfielder for the Los Angeles Angels, is the new first-base coach and will also be an outfield instructor. Most recently a Yankees minor league outfield and baserunning instructor, the 36-year-old Willits replaces Tony Pena.
Former Padres All-Star Phil Nevin will be the third-base coach, replacing Joe Espada. Nevin, 47, spent last year as the third-base coach for the San Francisco Giants after serving as a Triple-A manager the previous six years. He was the first overall pick in the 1992 draft, selected out of Cal State Fullerton by the Houston Astros.
P. J. Pilittere, 36, a former Yankees minor-league player and coach, takes over as assistant hitting coach.
Other hires include Carlos Mendoza (Major League quality control/infield instructor), Jason Brown (catching coach), Radley Haddad (coaching assistant/bullpen catcher) and Brett Weber (coaching assistant/instant replay coordinator, who returns to the Yankee for his fifth season in that role.
