3 realistic Andy Haines replacements, 1 wild idea Pirates should pursue

The Pirates recently moved on from hitting coach Andy Haines after three lousy offensive seasons under his employment. With the season over for Pittsburgh, Derek Shelton must begin to look for a new head of the offense as quickly as possible.

Getting a new hitting coach quickly can be very beneficial for the players, as they can begin to train with a new mind before spring training. That individual training in the offseason is crucial, but before that happens, the Pirates need to hire a new head honcho. Let's take a look at three realisitic options and one wild idea for a future hitting coach in Pittsburgh.

Who are some realisitic options for the Pirates to hire at hitting coach to replace Andy Haines?

David Popkins

The first option the Pirates should look at hiring is David Popkins, the former hitting coach of the Twins. He was let go after the 2024 season following Minnesota's September collpase, which knocked them out of playoff contention.

During his three-year tenure as the Twins' hitting coach, Minnesota's offense was consistently a top-third offense in MLB. They posted a team-wide wRC+ of 107, which was tied for sixth-best in baseball. 594 home runs was the seventh-best mark, and a .733 OPS was tied for ninth league-wide.

Popkins has proven to be very capable of leading an above-average offense, which is what the Pirates lack. Hiring Popkins would be a step in the right direction for the Pirates to improve their offense.

Jim Adduci

Another realistic route for the Pirates to look into is going with a former Cubs assistant hitting coach Jim Adduci. He was one of five members on the Chicago staff to be fired after the 2024 season.

The Cubs offense was a middle-of-the-pack kind of offense in 2024. They were tied at 13th in wRC+ at 101, 13th in OPS at .710, and 21st in home runs with 170. One big positive is ranking sixth in walk percentage at 8.9%.

Adduci was a former major leaguer himself, but he did not have a very long career. A potential pickup of the former Cubs assistant could help the Pirates cross divisional lines to replace Haines.

Christian Marrero

The last realistic option for a Haines replacement is Christian Marrero, who is actually already a part of the Pirates' coaching staff. He was Haines' assistant in the hitting coach role.

Promoting Marrero is a not out of the picture, as he is very familiar with the system, which could give him a slight boost over other candidates. The Pittsburgh offense has been among the worst in the league, which is why Haines was let go, but there was no accompanying announcement regarding moving on from Marrero. That shows they plan on keeping him with the team, and with the new job opening up, it could fall to him.

One wild idea that the Pirates should try to replace Haines at hitting coach

Mike Napoli

Along with Adduci, former World Series champion Mike Napoli was fired from the Cubs coaching staff following the 2024 season. Although he was their first base coach, Napoli obviously possesses a lot of knowledge as a patient and powerful hitter, which the Pirates could benefit from.

In his 12-year career, Napoli posted an OPS of .821 with 267 home runs and 744 runs batted in. He also had a wRC+ of 119, a walk percentage of 12.2%, and an fWAR of 21.5. He was an excellent hitter when he played in the league, and that could be a great mind to add to the coaching staff.

He does not have a long career of coaching, nor any experience as a hitting coach, but it would be a wild and interesting choice to consider as the Pirates' next hitting coach.

There are a lot of possibilities for the Pirates to consider as their next hitting coach. Various coaches just hit the market, which could be where the front office looks to fill a vacant hole in the staff.