The Yankees announced the hiring of James Lawson, 47, as hitting coach in a press release on Thursday.
Lawson is a 22-year coaching veteran with nine years of major league coaching experience.
He previously spent two stints with the Yankees organization (2006-11, 2014-16). During that time, he served as a minor league hitting instructor and Single-A hitting coach.
Lawson got his start in baseball when he was selected by the Seattle Mariners in the ninth round of the 1994 draft.굿모닝토토 도메인
His playing career was unsuccessful. He spent three seasons in the minor leagues and played in the independent Heartland League in 1998.
He then turned to coaching. In 2002, he began his career as a minor league coach for the Los Angeles Angels.
In June 2012, he became a major league coach for the first time when he was named hitting coach for the Chicago Cubs.
In 2017, he was named hitting coach for the Minnesota Twins, which was the pinnacle of his coaching career.
In his three years, Minnesota finished fourth in the majors in runs scored (2,492), fifth in batting average (.260), fifth in on-base percentage (.445), sixth in slugging percentage (.775), and seventh in home runs (679).
The 2019 season was particularly impressive, with 307 home runs, breaking the major league record for most home runs by a team in a single season.
Five players hit more than 30 home runs: Nelson Cruz (41), Max Kepler (36), Miguel Sano (34), Eddie Rosario (32), and Mitch Garber (31). The team also won the district title with 101 wins.
He later served as a bench coach for the Miami Marlins (2020-22) and as an assistant hitting coach for the Detroit Tigers in 2023.
The Yankees hired former All-Star first baseman Sean Casey as their new coach after firing hitting coach Dylan Lawson midway through last season. Casey stepped down after the season, leaving the hitting coach position vacant.
It was the first time that Yankees general manager Brian Cashman has made a midseason coaching change.
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