Last September, I took no pleasure in writing about the stark differences in coaching between the San Francisco Giants, who got the most out of their talent, and the Yankees, who… hadn’t. The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal had recently published a piece detailing the pre-2021 overhaul of the Giants’ coaching staff. By hiring twice as many coaches as is traditional and prioritizing advanced analytical thinking, communication skills, and enthusiasm over experience, the team seemingly came out of nowhere to win 107 games and the NL West.
By contrast, the Yankees took a half-measured approach to modern coaching.