Wally Joyner has been the Padres' hitting coach since the middle of last season, but he won't be hanging around any longer:
Wally Joyner, a member of two Padres teams that reached the playoffs, has stepped down as the club's hitting coach. Joyner gave his resignation letter to General Manager Kevin Towers on Monday.
"It bothers me a lot that I have come to the point where it is clear that I need to move on," Joyner said. "I came to the job hoping to put my experience and ideas to good use in teaching and coaching the Padres' hitters, but it has become obvious to me in the past few months that the organization's approach is different from mine."
There's a hint in Joyner's comments that the issue is one of plate discipline -- Joyner wanted hitters to "be ready for any pitch," and as we know, his bosses Sandy Alderson, Kevin Towers, and Paul DePodesta are more about patience -- but obviously the bottom line here is one of results more than philosophy. After all, Joyner was never himself some hacker, and I can't recall him being quoted saying silly things about aggressiveness since he became a hitting coach. Fact is that the Padres have a terrible offense, and that holds true even if you adjust for their cavernous park. Nothing Wally Joyner could have done short of grabbing a bat and transporting himself back to 1986 would have helped matters much.
The question I have is whether anyone can point to any evidence that a hitting coach actually matters.
The question I have is whether anyone can point to any evidence that a hitting coach actually matters.
After spending all day thinking that the Pirates' unrealistic demands for prospects were derailing a 
ADVERTISEMENT
