Pirates' Isiah Kiner-Falefa Excited For New Hitting Coach
No player on the Pittsburgh Pirates has a better understanding of what the team is getting in new hitting coach Matt Hague than infielder Isiah Kiner-Falefa.
The utility player played 83 games with the Toronto Blue Jays, where Hague was previously an assistant hitting coach before getting hired by Pittsburgh. Kiner-Falefa had high marks for Hague, noting his approach to coaching and how he'll be able to help a Pirates offense that was among the league's worst in 2024.
"I really liked working with him in Toronto and I'm excited he's now a Pirate," Kiner-Falefa said. "He's an up-and-coming coach that has a really good understanding of analytics as well as different techniques that allows guys to be free in the box. He's going to help us a lot."
Hague was drafted by the Pirates in the ninth round of the 2008 MLB Draft. He reached the big leagues in 2012 and also spent part of the 2014 season in Pittsburgh before he played for the Blue Jays in 2015 in his final stint in the majors. Hague joined the Blue Jays organization and was previously a hitting coach in Double-A and Triple-A before becoming their assistant hitting coach in 2024.
In Toronto, Kiner-Falefa was on pace to have one of his best seasons in the big leagues, hitting .292/.338/.420 with seven home runs and 33 RBIs. He struggled to maintain that success upon arriving in Pittsburgh, as he hit .240/.265/.322 with one home run and 10 RBIs across 50 games. Kiner-Falefa also struck out 41 times compared to just 37 when he was with the Blue Jays.
Hague has the tall task of improving a Pirates offense that ranked in the bottom 10 in nearly every major hitting stat. While signing or trading for impact bats could undoubtedly make a difference, it's more likely Pittsburgh will mostly lean on the players it currently has.
If Hague can get more out of the Pirates than his predecessor, they could be as well-positioned as it has been in recent years to make the playoffs, something it hasn't done since 2015.
