The Cardinals hired Bengie Molina as their assistant hitting coach:
Molina is Cardinals catcher Yadier Molina‘s older brother and will work alongside John Mabry, who was promoted from assistant hitting coach to replace Mark McGwire as primary hitting coach following McGwire’s move to the Dodgers.
I always find it interesting when poor hitters become hitting coaches. Molina hit for a decent average, and developed some power late in his career, but finished with a .307 OBP. In other words, he was a hacker, a type the Cardinals tended to avoid. So what does Molina bring to the table?
- He did develop power late in his career. If that was through a mechanical adjustment, he can teach that.
- As a former catcher, known for his defense, Molina should have a great deal of insight into the patterns of a batter/pitcher match-up. Getting hitters to know how a pitcher and catcher work against him could be helpful (like Top Gun teaches pilots how the enemy fights).
I’m interested to see how the Cardinals use Bengie.
There is a commen misconception for coaching in all sports that good players thus become good coaches, and bad players are thus less effective coaches.
Research demonstrates that the ability to accurately observe, analyse and then appropriately feedback are the crucial skills of an ‘effective’ coach – how good a hitter or OBPer you were has no relevance on the skill set required by coaches.
Alex Hayes » One the other hand, a hacker like Mickey Hatcher coached for years before it became clear he was not very good at it. A red flag should have been when Bobby Abreu showed up and convinced the Angels to me more selective. Hatcher said he had been trying for years without success.
Then there are players like Joe Carter and Jerry Remy, who realize their short comings as hitters, and don’t let their egos get in the way of analyzing the game.
Your point is well taken, that’s why I wonder what the Cardinals see in Molina as a coach. Sometimes you hire a friend (Hatcher), and sometimes you hire someone who is a great teacher (Kevin Long).
I’ll never forget Molina’s cycle against the Red Sox a couple of years ago. The triple gassed him. Great moment. I, too, am curious as to what the Cardinals see. I always thought Bengie was good at managing a game, so maybe to give a perspective to hitters on what the pitcher and defense is trying to do…anyway, it’ll be interesting to see.