He sees communication and hitting as key.
On Thursday, the Colorado Rockies announced they had relieved hitting coach Hensley Meulens of his duties, replacing him with former Rockies manager and then-special assistant to the general manager Clint Hurdle.
Today, Hurdle answered questions from the media, stressing that he saw his job as building skills and trust. It was a conversation that began on Monday afternoon when the Rockies faced the Los Angeles Dodgers after failing to score a single run during their three-game series with the San Diego Padres.
It was a change that happened quickly.
“I heard from Greg (Feasel) and Dick (Monfort) and Bill (Schmidt), and then I had some questions, and I want to make sure I had conversations with Buddy, because I’m here to be Buddy’s hitting coach, and I want to make sure everybody’s understanding of that.”
With this statement, Hurdle addressed a common question: Was there room for two managers in the Rockies dugout?
In a separate interview, manager Bud Black agreed, noting that bench coach Mike Redmond was also a former manager.
“Clint is a good baseball man,” Black said. “I’m going to lean on him for a lot of things, just like, like I do for my coaches. So in that regard, you know, there’s no issue there.”
In addition to his hitting duties, Hurdle is focused on building relationships. The minor league players, he already knows. It’s some of the veterans he’ll need to meet.
“There’s a handful of guys I’ve never worked with,” Hurdle said, citing Mickey Moniak, Nick Martini, Kris Bryant, and Ryan McMahon. Jacob Stallings is a player Hurdle knew from his time with the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Hurdle understands, though, that there’s a sense of urgency in making this change.
“You’ll hear people say, ‘We’ve only played 18 games.’ Well, we’ve played 18 games, and there’s been a common theme in most 18 games. We need to reverse the theme.”
How does he intend to approach the task ahead of him?
“I think you revisit offensive staples on things that have worked over the whole history of the game offensively,” he said. “What are you hunting at the plate? Where are your hot zones? Are we trying to do too much? I think there comes an opportunity in today’s game that we can declutter at times. We can try and simplify.”
Then he became more specific.
“When I first look at a hitter, I work from the feet up. I believe in the foundation, but the messaging needs to be clear, clean, and accurate.”
Hurdle acknowledges feeling a commitment to fans as well.
“I think they’re tired of hearing things,” Hurdle said. “We need to give them some action. We need to give them some on field support, something they can buy into, and something they can rally around and hope for as well.”
“He’s energetic — I think guys like and appreciate that,” said Stallings. “At least in my experience with him, I felt like we connected well, and I responded to his leadership. I think our young guys will do the same.”