Pirates manager Derek Shelton confirmed a report that hitting coach Andy Haines will return as the hitting coach in 2024.
“I think it’s one of the toughest jobs in the game, I can tell you that from personal experience and its also one of the most critiqued jobs in the game,” Shelton told Cook & Joe during his weekly segment on The Fan. (Shelton was the hitting coach in Minnesota before being hired by Pittsburgh).
Haines has faced harsh criticism from fans this season. The Pirates started out hot but quickly cooled off as they watched their record fall below .500.
But Shelton says there is a reason he will be back next season.
Related
“I think that there are things that we are seeing within our hitting group that we’re getting better at,” added Shelton.
Shelton pointed out to the improvement of Ji Hwan Bae, Ke’Bryan Hayes, Liover Peguero, Connor Joe and Bryan Reynolds.
“Sometimes its not immediate, sometimes its not as big as people expect but there are definitely improvements that we’ve had,” said Shelton
Related
