Photo Credit: CARMEN SMYTH/SPECIAL TO THE VENTURA COUNTY STAR
The New York Mets are reportedly continuing their efforts to revamp their baseball operations department.
According to Jon Heyman of MLB Network, the Mets are hiring former Cleveland hitting coordinator Kevin Howard as their farm director.
Howard, 39, began his coaching career as the hitting coach for Cleveland’s Single-A affiliate, the Mahoning Valley Scrappers in 2015. Following stops as hitting coach for Advanced-A Lake County and Double-A Akron, Howard was promoted to the organization’s hitting coordinator in January 2019.
The University of Miami graduate spent 12 seasons in the minors without making an MLB appearance. After being drafted in the fifth round of the 2002 MLB draft, Howard bounced between a total of eight ball clubs, hitting .284/.347/.416 over 1,059 MiLB games.
Howard played his High School ball at Westlake in California, where he was teammates with former Mets catcher Mike Nickeas. Other alumni include Christian Yelich, Mike Lieberthal, and Matt Franco.
We’ll keep you posted once the move is made official.
