Last-place Pirates fire batting, bullpen coaches

Field Level Media|published: Wed 2nd October, 14:27 2024

Jun 7, 2024; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Pittsburgh Pirates hitting coach Andy Haines (49) looks on at the batting cage before the game against he Minnesota Twins at PNC Park. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

The Pittsburgh Pirates fired three coaches on Wednesday, including batting coach Andy Haines and bullpen coach Justin Meccage.

The changes come after the Pirates finished last in the National League Central with a 76-86 mark.

The team also parted with strength and conditioning coach Adam Vish.

"After a thorough assessment, we believe these changes are necessary. More broadly, over the past few months, we have assessed every area of baseball operations with a focus on making the needed improvements to build a winning team in Pittsburgh," general manager Ben Cherington said in a statement.

The Pirates hired Haines, 47, ahead of the 2022 season after three years as hitting coach of the Milwaukee Brewers.

The Pirates scored 665 runs in 2024, ranked 24th in the major leagues. Their .672 OPS was 27th. The Pirates also finished in the bottom third in team batting average (.234) and home runs (160).

Meccage, 44, was the last remaining coach from Clint Hurdle's staff. He joined the team as pitching coach in 2018 but then transitioned to bullpen coach under current skipper Derek Shelton in 2020.

Pirates relievers finished with 4.49 ERA (27th in majors) and 27 blown saves (tied for fourth most).

Vish joined Shelton's staff in 2020.

--Field Level Media

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