The New York Yankees announced this week that Luis Rojas, the former manager of the crosstown New York Mets, will be their next third base coach.
The New York Yankees today announced that Luis Rojas has been named the club’s third base coach. pic.twitter.com/m7hNYy7ROY
— New York Yankees (@Yankees) November 15, 2021
Rojas now finds a job relatively quickly, after being told the Mets wouldn’t be renewing his contract as the team manager.
He was interviewed for the San Diego Padres’ managerial opening, but the team chose to go with the more experienced Bob Melvin once he was made available.
The Yankees had announced earlier in the offseason that Phil Nevin’s contract wouldn’t be renewed.
The Yankees Hope To Improve On The Basepaths
Nevin was the third base coach during the 2021 season, in which the Yankees made a league-leading 22 outs at home plate.
They also made 12 outs at third base, the fifth-most in MLB.
The Yankees are hoping that the situation can be better with Rojas at the position.
The former Mets skipper spent the last 16 years (from 2006 to 2021) at the other New York team, working in a variety of roles.
He was the Mets’ manager for the last two seasons, finishing with a 103-119 record between the two years.
Before that, he was the Mets’ quality control coach in 2019.
He has managed Double-A Binghamton (’17-18), Class-A Advanced St. Lucie (’15-16), Class-A Savannah (’12-14), and the Gulf Coast League Mets (’11) with a South Atlantic League Manager of the Year distinction in 2014.
In winter ball, he took Leones del Escogido to the title in ’15-16.
In short, Rojas is a baseball man with a lot of experience on a baseball field.
Baseball runs in the family, too, as he is the son of three-time MLB All-Star and 1994 NL Manager of the Year Felipe Alou and the brother of six-time All-Star Moises Alou.
He is a trustworthy figure and a beloved member of every clubhouse and dugout he has been in, including the 2021 Mets.
Pete Alonso tells a sweet Luis Rojas story from before the Mets drove him into the ground.
This is probably why the Yankees hired him so fast. pic.twitter.com/jjQdp2nB3s
— Joe (@Yankeelibrarian) November 16, 2021
A Respected Figure Around Baseball
Media members constantly called him out because of some of his decisions as the Mets’ skipper, but he always had the respect of his players, many of which he managed in the minor leagues when they were prospects.
However, there isn’t much information about Rojas’ background as a third base coach, so he will have to prove his worth with the Yankees there.
Nevin’s decision-making at the time of sending a baserunner home or holding him at third looked bad in 2021, and that’s an area the Yankees would like to improve.
They gave away far too many outs on the basepaths, and they are hoping Rojas can help them.
The Yankees still have openings in the hitting coach and first base coach positions.
As for the rest of the coaching staff, bench coach Carlos Mendoza, pitching coach Matt Blake, catching coach Tanner Swanson, and bullpen coach Mike Harkey are all expected to return under manager Aaron Boone for the 2022 campaign.
After losing Nevin, it’s safe to say Rojas will be a nice addition to the coaching staff and brings a lot of baseball knowledge to the Yankees.
He is also bilingual, which is extremely helpful with young, Latin American prospects who still don’t fully understand English.
Overall, it was a good hire for the Bombers.
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