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Milwaukee Brewers Dismiss Hitting Coach Andy Haines After Early Postseason Exit

By Brandon Sneide

Sep 4, 2020; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Milwaukee Brewers hitting coach Andy Haines (49), left and manager Craig Counsell (30) react to a strike call by home plate umpire Jerry Meals (41) in the seventh inning against the Cleveland Indians at Progressive Field. Haines was ejected from the game. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports
Sep 4, 2020; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Milwaukee Brewers hitting coach Andy Haines (49), left and manager Craig Counsell (30) react to a strike call by home plate umpire Jerry Meals (41) in the seventh inning against the Cleveland Indians at Progressive Field. Haines was ejected from the game. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports /
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A busy off-season just got more active for the Milwaukee Brewers President of Baseball Operations David Stearns and Assistant General Manager Matt Arnold.

The Milwaukee Brewers have reportedly dismissed hitting coach Andy Haines.

Assistant hitting coach Jacob Cruz has also been notified by the club that he may seek other opportunities as the team will search for Haines’ replacement.

This has been a growing trend over social media the last year, as many fans were calling for the removal of Haines, most notably during the team’s struggles this season.

According to Statmuse, during the regular season, the Brewers’ offense was ranked near the bottom in all of Major League Baseball for batting average, hits, strikeouts, and slugging percentage.

It was an offense that undoubtedly struggled at times and was way too inconsistent considering the talent on the roster.

The highs and lows were too much to risk going forward.

It was a roller coaster ride the last couple of years for the offense under Haines; The likes of Kolten Wong and Avisail Garcia had tremendous success under Haines and saw career years this past season.

On the flip side, the production of guys like Christian Yelich and Keston Hiura saw their numbers dip dramatically this year, which likely played a huge factor in this decision.

Overall, this team was constructed well from an offensive standpoint, and the lack of production needs to be addressed going forward.

During the playoffs, the offensive struggles from the regular season, especially during that final month, carried over and the bats were nowhere to be found. Milwaukee went scoreless in 33 out of 36 total innings, mustering only 24 hits, and scoring only six runs—prompting an early and unexpected exit from the postseason after a historic season.

The Milwaukee Brewers have to get this next hire right.

It is unknown at this time who the Brewers will target in their search, but if I had to bet, David Stearns would get the guy he wants, and this very well may be his most crucial hire yet.

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