Hurdle had been serving as a special assistant to general manager Bill Schmidt
The MLB-worst Colorado Rockies are scapegoating their hitting coach. On Thursday, the Rockies announced they have fired hitting coach Hensley Meulens and replaced him with former manager Clint Hurdle, who had been serving as a special assistant to general manager Bill Schmidt. Hurdle will stay on as hitting coach for the rest of the season.
The Rockies have baseball’s worst record (3-15) and run differential (minus-51). They rank 21st in batting average (.220), 24th in on-base percentage (.284), and 24th in slugging percentage (.344) despite playing home games in Coors Field. Adjusted for ballpark, the Rockies have a team-wide 72 OPS+, fifth worst in baseball. That means they’re 28% worse than the league-average offense.
That is not on Meulens, of course. The Rockies lack talent. Meulens joined the team as their hitting coach in 2023 after a successful coaching career with several teams in several different roles. That includes hitting coach with the San Francisco Giants during their World Series championship years in 2010, 2012, and 2024. It’s easier to fire the hitting coach than the players, so the Rockies fired Meulens.
More than anything, the Rockies are in baseball’s basement because they are behind the times organizationally and seemingly unwilling to bring in new people and fresh perspectives. The front office is loaded with people who have been with the team for decades. There is something to be said for loyalty and promoting from within like the Rockies do, no doubt, but at some point loyalty becomes stagnation. Colorado is far beyond that point.
Look at the rotation. Kyle Freeland, Germán Márquez, and Antonio Senzatela have each made four starts for the Rockies this year. They were three of their top four in games started in 2017. That little turnover in the rotation is unheard of. The rotation is not to blame for the bad offense, but it is a sign the Rockies aren’t on the up and up, organizationally. Things are broken and yet nothing changes.
Hurdle, 67, was Colorado’s manager from 2002-09. I understand the hitting coach market is not ripe in the middle of the season, but once again the Rockies are going with someone they know, and not bringing in a new voice. The way the Rockies operate does not work. The proof is in the standings every year. A new hitting coach is window dressing. Things must change higher up on the organizational ladder for the team to have even a modicum of success.
The Rockies went 59-103 in 2023 and 61-101 in 2024. Those were the first two 100-loss seasons in franchise history. They are well on their way to their third this year.
