Mets hire ex-Yankees hitting coach Kevin Long

The New York Mets have hired Kevin Long as their new hitting coach. Long was recently fired from the same position by the crosstown Yankees.

The New York Mets have hired Kevin Long as their new hitting coach, the team announced Thursday. 

Long was fired as hitting coach of the New York Yankees along with first base coach Mick Kelleher on Oct. 10. 

Long became the Yankees' hitting coach in 2007 when Don Mattingly was promoted to bench coach. In his first several seasons, the Yankees' offense was among the best in baseball, but in 2014 New York scored the third-fewest runs in the American League.

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The Mets fired hitting coach Dave Hudgens in May, then fired the man who replaced him, Lamar Johnson, at the end of the season. The Mets had the third-lowest batting average in  MLB this year at .239. 

The Mets went 79-83 in 2014, finishing tied for second in the NL East but 17 games behind the division-winning Washington Nationals. New York's 79 wins tied for the team's highest win total since 2008. 

- Molly Geary