Dodgers Reportedly Losing McGwire to San Diego

The Dodgers are now on the search for a hitting coach, as Mark McGwire will reportedly become bench coach in San Diego.

After finally naming their manager, the Dodgers knew they would have other coaching vacancies to fill. Rick Honeycutt, while not officially back yet, is expected to be back as the Dodgers’ pitching coach. Dave Roberts is obviously the manager, and the rest of the coaching staff was reportedly free to search for other jobs.

San Diego Tribune writer Dennis Lin wrote over the weekend that McGwire seemed to be a strong candidate to take the bench coaching vacancy in San Diego, and CBS Sports’  Jon Heyman tweeted early Tuesday that he was expected to be named bench coach.

McGwire was born in Pomona and went to USC. He was drafted 10th overall by the A’s and hit 49 home runs in his rookie year, which is still a rookie record. He hit 363 homers in 12 seasons in Oakland before being traded to the Cardinals, where he hit 220 homers in the next five years. His ties to steroids have kept him from being a Hall of Famer and after nine seasons, he returned to the dugout to be the Cardinals hitting coach, and took the same job in 2013 with the Dodgers to be closer to home.

Aug 12, 2015; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers hitting coach Mark McGwire prior to the game against the Washington Nationals at Dodger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

McGwire’s greatest moment with the Dodgers came after Ian Kennedy was headhunting Dodgers in June 2013. He hit Zack Greinke and Yasiel Puig with pitches, sparking a long spat that saw McGwire ready to take on Arizona’s (at the time) third base coach Matt Williams and manager Kirk Gibson. WHY DID SOME OF YOU VOTE FOR GIBSON IN MY MANAGERS POLL??

While at the time, many (including myself) loved the hiring of McGwire, he drew a lot of criticism this season for the Dodgers apparently inability to shorten up swings and put the ball in play at times. Many tied Joc Pederson‘s struggles to McGwire, as many believed that Joc needed to stop swinging for the fences and just try to get bat on ball. I’m not sure how much of that blame can be put on a hitting coach, but it will be something to look for out of the next hitting coach.

The Dodgers now have openings at first and third base coach and hitting coach. They will likely need a bench coach, as many believe Tim Wallach will join Don Mattingly in Miami.

For what it’s worth, Lin speculated that former Diamondback hitting coach Turner Ward could be a possibility for the Dodgers’ job. Either way, this offseason promises a lot of change and it looks like it’s finally starting to heat up.