The Yankees are bringing a familiar face back to New York as the team’s new assistant hitting coach, as the club announced that Hensley Meulens has been hired for the job. (The Curacao Chronicle first reported Meulens’ appointment over the weekend). The position has been briefly filled by Eric Chavez earlier this winter, before Chavez left the Yankees to become the Mets’ chief hitting coach.
Meulens is no stranger to the Bronx, as he spent five of his seven MLB seasons playing with the Yankees (from 1989-93). He was also one of the candidates interviewed for the last Yankees’ managerial vacancy, before the club hired Aaron Boone in December 2017.
After the Yankees parted ways with former hitting coaches Marcus Thames and P.J. Pilittere after the season, Yankees GM Brian Cashman said he planned to add a third hitting coach to the mix, a nod to the recent trend for larger and more specialized coaching staffs around baseball. Dillon Lawson was promoted to the role of hitting coach and Casey Dykes was named assistant, and since neither Lawson or Dykes played pro ball, New York was reportedly focused on hiring a former Major League veteran to add some on-field experience to the staff. Chavez fit the description, and Meulens brings both his playing experience as well as a lengthy coaching resume.
Meulens spent 10 seasons on the Giants’ coaching staff, serving as both the hitting coach and bench coach under Bruce Bochy. Meulens also spent a single season as the Mets’ bench coach in 2020, and spent time as a coach in the minors in the Orioles and Pirates organizations from 2003-2008.
This resume has put Meulens on the radar for several managerial openings over the years, as he interviewed with not only the Yankees, but also the Twins, Reds, Mets, Red Sox and Giants over the years. Given his long stint in San Francisco, there was some sense that Meulens could be Bochy’s heir apparent in the manager’s job, though he moved onto his bench coach role with the Mets after the Giants instead opted to hire Gabe Kapler as skipper.
Seems like a good hire as part of the hitting coach mix.
Your move now, Mets.
They already did when they swiped Chavez.
Yes. That’s what I wasn’t jokingly referring to. The last time the Yankees filled this position, the Mets took him the following week!
Gotcha!
“Mets hire Derek Jeter as assistant to the assistant hitting coach’s wife”
Fun fact this guy is officially a knight
So was Didi and Sidney Ponson. Yankees gotta have some royalty around.
Bam Bam!
Bam Bam !
Can we just make Muelens the manager & Le Booner the assistant batting coach? Hey – Boone has big league experience.
There’s a former SS who may want a job. Should be at all costs if they can get Gary Denbo to be part of the fold too. One can dream…
I’d love for Derek and Mattingly to return to the Yankees organization. There’s no players more popular than those two since Munson, including Mo. That said, I’m not sure where Derek would fit. He wants to be part of ownership, and he was CEO of the Marlins. He could certainly buy into the Yankees, but he’s not displacing Randy Levine in his role. I hope I’m wrong and they can figure some way to bring him home.
I’ll personally pack Lavine’s bags.
@Joe, oh, I get it. Fans would universally send Levine packing. Thing is, the Steinbrenner’s love him, and for a reason. He runs the business side. He understands NY politics coming from that, he negotiated the bond agreements with NYC for the Stadium, he helped structure the Yankees into multiple businesses shielding their finances from revenue sharing, he oversees YES, etc. He’s probably made the Steinbrenner’s hundreds of millions on the business side. There’s a reason he’s remained President of the team. He’s not President of Baseball Operations. He’s above that. He’s president of the Yankees and their affiliates. Jeter couldn’t do his job.
Yeah, but Randy Levine is no astronaut.
My “favorite” part was Levine calling a press conference and then purposely referring to Dellin as Dillon. It’s mean-spirited things like that why he’s not liked, yet it’s also why he’s good at his job. He doesn’t want to be liked. Frankly, I wish Hal would send Randy in as his representative on the owners’ committee. A NYC political brawler and attorney. They wouldn’t know what hit them!
Derek is too busy on the phone with Mike Repole & Vinnie Viola and Josh Harris & David Blitzer and a few other billionaires who want MLB teams seeing who he can team with to make an offer to Hal Steinbrenner.
That was all part of the, “‘Dylan’ Betances is not an astronaut”. The entire thing was my “favorite”. Man he’s a dick. But you’re right. He’s made/saved the Yanks more money than I can spell, man.
part of me hoped he would step back once the stadium deal was finalized but i guess inside knowledge of nyc political graft never ceases to be useful
Would I want to introduce him to my son or have him over for dinner? Hell no.
Is he good at being a president of a baseball team? Unfortunately: yes. Very good.
Definitely thinking Randy Levine could end all unemployment if he was President of the United States (the worst job) instead of President of the Yankees.
Now get him some players to coach.
Bam Bam returns.
Meulens is also manager of the Kingdom of The Netherlands team, finished 4th in the 2017 World Baseball Classic.
How does this guy go from perineal managerial candidate to the back-up choice for assistant hitting coach?
It does seem like a step down for him. But he was unemployed.
@thickiedon- not sure. I wanted Bam Bam to get the manager job instead of Boonie a few years ago. It’s to bad he didn’t. Hell I’d even take Girardi back.
It’s odd. It looks bad on MLB from a minority hiring practices standard. Media could have a field day with this considering how this is such an incendiary topic. Just have a feeling insiders don’t trust the guy in high leverage situations.
@thickiedon- you definitely bring up an interesting point about the minority hiring process. I had the heads up early as far as Boone being hired over Bam Bam. I don’t think race had anything to do with it though. Boonie became a big piece of history hitting that GW homer against Wakefield, and that his Father Bob managed for years. The Yankees apparently felt that Boonie would have more success then Muelens because managing was in his blood, so they say.
Was Pebbles consulted in this matter?
You win!!
@htrab77- Or was the town of Bedrock consulted?
congrats bam bam
Good goin’ Bam Bam!
Uncomfortable early 90s flashbacks
Wasn’t Meulens one of those “ Can’t miss prospects” who had a plaque at the stadium and number to be retired before he stepped foot in Yankee Stadium? Just askin for a friend.
BAM-BAM!
yabba dabba doo… not mess with judge’s swing
Bam Bam back in the Bronx. He might be managing next season, or maybe even this year. Hopefully Mattingly leaves the Marlins like Jetes did and both comeback to NY. Their both definitely missed.
I say, we get rid of Hal and Randy..and bring back Hank
I say… bring back Hank
Bam Bam returns.