The Dodgers are losing a familiar piece of their coaching setup, and it’s not because they wanted to move on.
Aaron Bates is leaving Los Angeles after 12 years in the organization, according to Tim Dierkes of MLB Trade Rumors. The Dodgers made an effort to keep him, offering a multiyear deal, but the two sides couldn’t reach an agreement.
That detail matters. This wasn’t a case of the team simply clearing room or turning the page. Los Angeles wanted Bates back, and now it has to fill the gap left by a coach who had spent more than a decade inside the system.
Bates climbed through the Dodgers’ minor league coaching ranks before reaching the big league staff. He worked as assistant hitting coach from 2019 through 2022, then took over as hitting coach in 2023. Along the way, he became part of the organization’s daily rhythm and picked up experience that went well beyond any one roster or Opening Day lineup.
The production under his watch was strong, too. In Bates’ four seasons as hitting coach or co-hitting coach, the Dodgers finished among MLB’s top four in runs scored every year.
That kind of run doesn’t happen by accident, and it helps explain why the Dodgers tried to lock him in on a longer deal. They’re not just losing a title on a staff directory. They’re losing continuity, familiarity and a voice the organization had already decided it wanted to keep.
Robert Van Scoyoc has shared the hitting-coach duties, and the Dodgers still have an established operation in place. This isn’t the kind of loss that knocks them off course. But it is a notable one, because it forces them to replace someone who already knew how the machine worked.
From San Diego, we’re used to assuming Los Angeles has an answer for everything. This time, the Dodgers have to find a new one in the coaching room.
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