The New York Yankees today announced their coaching staff for the 2024 season. Joining Yankees Manager Aaron Boone will be Bench Coach Brad Ausmus, Pitching Coach Matt Blake, Bullpen Coach Mike Harkey, Assistant Pitching Coach Desi Druschel, Hitting Coach James Rowson, Assistant Hitting Coaches Casey Dykes and Pat Roessler, Third Base and Outfield Coach Luis Rojas, First Base and Infield Coach Travis Chapman, and Major League Field Coordinator and Director of Catching Tanner Swanson.
Ausmus, 54, begins his 34th season in professional baseball, his 11th season as a Manager, Coach or front office executive, and his first as the Yankees’ Bench Coach. He most recently served as the Oakland Athletics’ Bench Coach during the 2022 season. Prior to that, Ausmus managed the Los Angeles Angels in 2019 (72-90) and was a Special Assistant to Angels General Manager Billy Eppler during the 2018 season. From 2014-17, he managed the Detroit Tigers, guiding the club to a 314-332 (.486) record, which was highlighted by a 90-72 record and a postseason berth in his first season at the helm.
Immediately following his playing career, Ausmus spent three seasons (2011-13) with the San Diego Padres as a Special Assistant in Baseball Operations. He also managed Team Israel in the 2013 World Baseball Classic and was their Bench Coach in the 2023 edition of the tournament.
Widely regarded as a premier defensive catcher, Ausmus batted .251 (1,579-for-6,279) with 718R, 270 doubles, 34 triples, 80HR, 607RBI, 634BB, 102SB and a .325 on-base percentage over 18 Major League seasons with San Diego (1993-96), Detroit (1996, 1999-2000), Houston (1997-98, 2001-08) and Los Angeles-NL (2009-10). Ausmus won three Gold Glove Awards (2001-02, ’06) and ranks fourth in Major League history in putouts by a catcher (12,839) and eighth in games played as a catcher (1,938).
Born in New Haven, Conn., Ausmus graduated from Cheshire High School and was selected by the Yankees in the 48th round of the 1987 First-Year Player Draft. He opted to attend Dartmouth College but did not play baseball there, instead playing in the Yankees’ minor league system while working towards his degree, which he received in 1991. He played five seasons in the Yankees’ minor league system (1988-92), topping out at Triple-A Columbus in his final season with the organization before being selected by the Colorado Rockies in the 1992 Expansion Draft.
Blake, 38, returns for his fifth season as the Yankees’ Pitching Coach. In 2023, Yankees pitchers ranked second in the American League and third in the Majors in opponents’ batting average (.234). Yankees pitchers also ranked sixth in the Majors in opponents’ slugging percentage (.396, fourth in AL), ninth in opponents’ on-base percentage (.308, sixth in AL) and opponents’ OPS (.703, fifth in AL), and 10th in ERA (3.97).
Since joining the Major League coaching staff in 2020, Yankees pitchers rank third in the Majors in strikeouts (4,995, second in AL), WHIP (1.19, second in AL) and opponents’ on-base percentage (.298, second in AL), fourth in opponents’ batting average (.229, second in AL) and K/BB (3.10, second in AL), fifth in ERA (3.74, third in AL) and K/9.0IP (9.31, second in AL), and sixth in BB/9.0IP (3.01, fourth in AL).
Prior to joining the Yankees, Blake spent four seasons with Cleveland (2016-19). Blake began his time with Cleveland as the Lower Level Pitching Coordinator in 2016. From 2017-19, he served as the organization’s Assistant Director of Player Development before being promoted to Director of Pitching Development.
Blake also served seven years as the Pitching Coordinator for Cressey Sports Performance while also coaching the Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox of the Cape Cod League. The Concord, N.H., native pitched four seasons at the College of the Holy Cross (Mass.) and graduated in 2007 with a degree in psychology and philosophy.
Harkey, 57, returns for his 15th season as the Yankees’ Bullpen Coach, having held the position from 2008-13 before returning to the club’s coaching staff for the 2016 season. In 2023, Yankees relievers posted a Major League-best 3.34 ERA (619.0IP, 230ER), .221 opponents’ batting average and .349 opponents’ slugging percentage, ranked second in the Majors in HR/9.0IP (0.86, second in AL) and opponents’ OPS (.658, first in AL), fifth in WHIP (1.23, third in AL) and sixth in opponents’ OBP (.309, third in AL). According to Elias, it marked the 12th time in franchise history (since 1913 when ER became an official stat in both leagues) and just the second time in the last 42 years (since 1982) that the Yankees posted the lowest bullpen ERA in the Majors (also 1917, 1922, ‘27, ‘39, ‘45, ‘47, ‘55, ‘57, ‘70, ‘81 and ’97).
The 2024 season marks his 18th on a Major League coaching staff, also serving as the Pitching Coach for the Arizona Diamondbacks from 2014-15 and spending the 2006 season as the Bullpen Coach for the Florida Marlins. He also served as a Minor League Pitching Coach for seven seasons in the Chicago Cubs (2007) and San Diego Padres (2000-05) organizations.
The San Diego, Calif., native was the fourth overall pick of the 1987 First-Year Player Draft by the Chicago Cubs and went 36-36 with a 4.49 ERA in 131 Major League games (104 starts) with the Cubs (1988, ‘90-93), Colorado Rockies (1994), Oakland Athletics (1995), California Angels (1995) and Los Angeles Dodgers (1997).
Druschel, 48, enters his third season as the Yankees’ Assistant Pitching Coach and his sixth season in the Yankees organization. He also served as the Yankees’ Manager of Pitch Development for three seasons from 2019-21. Prior to joining the Yankees, Druschel spent five years at the University of Iowa, serving as the team’s Pitching Coach from 2017-19 after working as their Director of Baseball Operations from 2014-17.
Druschel began his coaching career as an Assistant Coach at Vinton-Shellsburg H.S. (Iowa) in 1998, before joining the collegiate ranks at Indiana University from 1999-2000. He spent five years (2000-04) at Mount St. Clare College (Iowa), serving as an Assistant from 2000-01 before taking over as Head Coach from 2001-04. From 2004-14, Druschel worked at Mount Mercy University (Iowa), serving as an Assistant from 2004-05 before being promoted to Head Coach (2005-14).
The Vinton, Iowa, native played baseball and basketball at Upper Iowa University and Mount Mercy University (Iowa) from 1994-98. He earned his master’s degree in athletic administration from Indiana University in 2001.
Rowson, 47, rejoins the Yankees organization with 22 years of professional coaching experience. The 2024 season will mark his 10th on a Major League coaching staff and his first as the Yankees’ Hitting Coach.
Rowson spent last season as the Detroit Tigers’ Assistant Hitting Coach after serving as the Bench Coach for the Miami Marlins from 2020-22. Prior to his stint in Miami, he was the Hitting Coach for the Minnesota Twins from 2017-19.
The Mount Vernon, N.Y., native spent nine years in the Yankees organization from 2006-11 and 2014-16, serving as the Minor League Hitting Coordinator in seven of those seasons (2008-11, ’14-16). He was also the Hitting Coach for Single-A Tampa from 2006-07. In between his stints with the Yankees, Rowson spent two seasons with the Chicago Cubs organization (2012-13), originally serving as their Minor League Hitting Coordinator before being named the Cubs’ Major League Hitting Coach in June 2012.
Rowson began his coaching career with the Los Angeles Angels organization, spending four years as a Minor League Hitting Coach with Single-A Rancho Cucamonga (2004-05), Single-A Cedar Rapids (2003) and Rookie-level Provo (2002).
He was originally selected by the Seattle Mariners in the ninth round of the 1994 First-Year Player Draft out of Mount St. Michael High School in the Bronx. The former outfielder played three minor league seasons with the Mariners (1995-96) and Yankees (1997) before playing in the Independent Heartland League in 1998.
Dykes, 33, enters his third season on the Yankees’ Major League coaching staff. Prior to joining the club’s Major League coaching staff, he served as the Hitting Coach for Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre in 2021. Dykes had been assigned to serve as the Hitting Coach for the Yankees’ Single-A Charleston affiliate in 2020 before the season was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Prior to joining the Yankees, he spent one season (2019) as the Hitting Coach at Indiana University, where the Hoosiers won the Big Ten regular season championship and led all of Division I in home runs during the regular season. He also served as Hitting Coach and Recruiting Coordinator at Virginia Military Institute from 2015-18. Dykes began his coaching career as an Assistant at his alma mater, Western Kentucky, from 2013-14. He played four seasons at Western Kentucky (2009-12), graduating with a bachelor’s degree in sport management before completing his master’s in athletic administration in 2014.
Roessler, 64, rejoins the Yankees organization as an Assistant Hitting Coach. The 2024 season will mark Roessler’s 13th year with the Yankees (also 2004-14, ’19) and 37th season in professional baseball. In 2019, he was a Player Development Advisor for the Yankees after serving as the organization’s Director of Player Development from September 2004 through the end of the 2014 season. Additionally, he was the organization’s Field Coordinator from September 2004 through the 2013 season and served as the club’s Hitting Coordinator in 2005, ’12 and ’13. For the second half of the 2006 season, Roessler also managed Single-A Charleston.
Roessler spent the last four seasons (2020-23) as the Assistant Hitting Coach for the Washington Nationals. In between his previous two stints with the Yankees, he spent four seasons with the Mets (2015-18), serving as their Assistant Hitting Coach from 2015-17 before being promoted to Hitting Coach for the 2018 season.
Prior to joining the Yankees, Roessler was the Minor League Hitting Coordinator for the Houston Astros from 2002-04. From 2000-01, he was the Major League Hitting Coach for the Montreal Expos after serving as the organization’s Minor League Hitting Coordinator from 1995-97. In between stints with the Expos, Roessler was the Minor League Hitting Coordinator for the Pittsburgh Pirates from 1998-99.
He also worked for the Chicago White Sox organization from 1988-94. Roessler was the organization’s Roving Hitting Instructor in 1988 before serving as the Hitting Coach for Single-A Sarasota in 1989 and ’93, Double-A Birmingham from 1990-92 and Single-A South Bend in 1994.
Roessler began his coaching career with Old Dominion University (Va.), serving as the Assistant Baseball Coach from 1983-88.
The Phoenix, Ariz., native received his bachelor’s degree in physical education from the University of Arizona in 1983 and a master’s degree in sport management from Old Dominion in 1987. He played baseball at the University of Arizona and was a member of the 1980 College World Series championship team.
Rojas, 42, enters his third season as the Yankees’ Third Base and Outfield Coach. Prior to joining the Yankees. Rojas spent 16 years with the New York Mets organization (2006-21), including two seasons as the club’s Manager (2020-21). During that span, the Mets went 103-119 (.464) in 222 games.
Rojas was the sixth Dominican-born Manager in Major League history. His father, Felipe Alou, was the first when he managed the Montreal Expos (1992-2001) and San Francisco Giants (2003-06) after his 17-season Major League career. Luis and Felipe were the sixth father-son duo to both serve as Major League Managers, joining Buddy and David Bell, Aaron and Bob Boone, Connie and Earle Mack, George and Dick Sisler, and Bob and Joel Skinner. His brother, Moises Alou, also played 17 seasons in the Majors with seven different teams.
In 2019, Rojas served as the club’s Major League Quality Control Coach. Prior to joining the Mets’ Major League staff, Rojas managed Double-A Binghamton (2017-18), Single-A St. Lucie (2015-16), Single-A Savannah (2012-14) and the Gulf Coast League Mets (2011). Rojas also served as a Minor League Coach for Single-A Savannah in 2010 and held the same role for the Gulf Coast League Mets from 2008-09. He spent his first full season in the Mets organization in 2007 with the Dominican Summer League team after joining the organization in 2006.
Rojas also managed the Dominican Republic National Team in the WBSC Premier12 tournament in 2019. Additionally, the Santo Domingo, D.R., native led Leones del Escogido to a Dominican Winter League championship in 2015-16.
During his playing career, Rojas spent time in the minor league systems of the Baltimore Orioles (2000), Florida Marlins (2001-02) and Montreal Expos/Washington Nationals (2003-05).
Chapman, 45, enters his third season as the club’s First Base and Infield Coach and his 12th in the Yankees organization. He also enters his third season as the organization’s Director of Infield. Prior to joining the Major League coaching staff, he served as the Yankees’ Minor League Infield Coordinator in 2021 after spending the 2020 season coaching at the Alternate Site as the Assistant Infield Coordinator. Chapman had been assigned to serve as the Manager for the GCL Yankees in 2020 before the season was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Prior to that, he spent four seasons as a Defensive Coach for Single-A Charleston (2015-16, ’19) and Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre (2018). In 2017, he managed the DSL Yankees. Chapman made his minor league managerial debut in 2014 with the GCL Yankees 1 after making his professional coaching debut in 2013 as a coach for the GCL Yankees 2. He was also an Assistant Coach for the 18U USA National team in 2012 that won a gold medal in Seoul, South Korea.
The Jacksonville, Fla., native was originally selected by the Phillies in the 17th round of the 2000 First-Year Player Draft out of Mississippi State University and made his Major League debut with the club in 2003. He played in 506 combined minor league games over seven seasons with the Philadelphia (2000-03), Kansas City (2004), Cincinnati (2005) and Pittsburgh (2006) organizations, hitting .286 (507-for-1,771) with 227, 117 doubles, 5 triples, 41HR, 286RBI and 185BB.
Swanson, 41, enters his fifth season as the Yankees’ Director of Catching and his first as the club’s Major League Field Coordinator. He previously served as the club’s Quality Control/Catching Coach and Director of Catching from 2020-23. Prior to joining the Yankees, he spent two seasons (2018-19) as the Minnesota Twins’ Minor League Catching Coordinator.
The Seattle, Wash., native spent nine seasons at various levels of collegiate baseball, including a five-year stint as a Volunteer Assistant Coach at the University of Washington (2013-17), where he also briefly served as the school’s Director of Baseball Operations for one season (2012). During his tenure as a coach at Washington, his catchers garnered three All-Pac-12 Conference selections, with two also being selected in the first three rounds of the First-Year Player Draft. He also served as Head Coach at Green River Community College (Wash.) in 2011.
Swanson was a lecturer in the School of Physical Education and School Health, while also serving as an Assistant Coach at his alma mater, Central Washington University, in 2010. In 2009, he was an Assistant at Everett Community College (Wash.), and in 2008, he taught and coached baseball at Sultan High School.
