Few were shocked, or even surprised, when the KC Royals chose Mike Matheny to succeed retired manager Ned Yost. After all, General Manager Dayton Moore hired Matheny as an adviser after St. Louis fired him as its manager, mirroring the same path Moore put Yost on when the Brewers fired him.
Instead, it is the composition of Matheny’s coaching staff that is somewhat surprising. New managers typically have much, if not total, discretion when it comes to hiring coaches and like to surround themselves with proven coaches they trust to provide good teaching, fine leadership, and sound dugout counsel.