The New York Yankees announced their coaching staff for the 2026 season. Joining Yankees Manager Aaron Boone will be Bench Coach Brad Ausmus, Pitching Coach Matt Blake, Assistant Pitching Coaches Preston Claiborne and Desi Druschel, Hitting Coach James Rowson, Assistant Hitting Coaches Casey Dykes and Jake Hirst, Third Base/Outfield Coach Luis Rojas, First Base/Infield/Baserunning Coach Dan Fiorito and Major League Field Coordinator and Director of Catching Tanner Swanson.

Ausmus, 56, begins his 36th season in professional baseball, his 13th season as a manager, coach or front office executive and his third as the Yankees’ bench coach. Prior to joining the Yankees, he served as the Oakland Athletics’ bench coach during the 2022 season. Ausmus managed the Los Angeles Angels in 2019 (72-90) and was a special assistant to Angels General Manager Billy Eppler during the 2018 season. From 2014-17, he managed the Detroit Tigers, guiding the club to a 314-332 (.486) record, which was highlighted by a 90-72 record and a postseason berth in his first season at the helm.

Immediately following his playing career, Ausmus spent three seasons (2011-13) with the San Diego Padres as a special assistant in baseball operations. He also managed Team Israel in the 2013 World Baseball Classic and was their bench coach in the 2023 edition of the tournament. Ausmus will manage Team Israel again during the 2026 World Baseball Classic.

Widely regarded as a premier defensive catcher, Ausmus batted .251 (1,579-for-6,279) with 718 runs, 270 doubles, 34 triples, 80 HR, 607 RBI, 634 BB, 102 SB and a .325 on-base percentage over 18 Major League seasons with San Diego (1993-96), Detroit (1996, 1999-2000), Houston (1997-98, 2001-08) and Los Angeles-NL (2009-10). Ausmus won three Gold Glove Awards (2001-02, ’06) and ranks fourth in Major League history in putouts by a catcher (12,839) and eighth in games played as a catcher (1,938).

Born in New Haven, Conn., Ausmus graduated from Cheshire High School and was selected by the Yankees in the 48th round of the 1987 First-Year Player Draft. He opted to attend Dartmouth College but did not play baseball there, instead playing in the Yankees’ Minor League system while working towards his degree, which he received in 1991. He played five seasons in the Yankees’ Minor League system (1988-92), topping out at Triple-A Columbus in his final season with the organization before being selected by the Colorado Rockies in the 1992 Expansion Draft.

Blake, 40, returns for his seventh season as the Yankees’ pitching coach. In 2025, Yankees pitchers ranked second in the Majors in opponents' batting average (.229, first in AL); fourth in strikeouts (1,440, second in AL), strikeouts per 9.0 innings (9.00, second in AL) and opponents' OPS (.685, second in AL); fifth in opponents' slugging percentage (.379, third in AL); sixth in inherited runners scored percentage (27.5%, fifth in AL) and seventh in strikeout rate (23.7%, third in AL).

Since joining the Major League coaching staff in 2020, Yankees pitchers rank third in the Majors in opponents’ batting average (.230, first in AL); fourth in strikeouts (7,892, second in AL), opponents’ on-base percentage (.302, third in AL) and opponents’ slugging percentage (.384, second in AL); fifth in ERA (3.77, third in AL), WHIP (1.21, third in AL), K/9.0IP (9.20, second in AL), strikeout rate (24.4%, second in AL) and opponents’ OPS (.686, third in AL) and seventh in K/BB (2.92, fourth in AL).

Prior to joining the Yankees, Blake spent four seasons with Cleveland (2016-19). Blake began his time with Cleveland as the lower level pitching coordinator in 2016. From 2017-19, he served as the organization’s assistant director of player development before being promoted to director of pitching development.

Blake also served seven years as the pitching coordinator for Cressey Sports Performance while also coaching the Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox of the Cape Cod League. The Concord, N.H., native pitched four seasons at the College of the Holy Cross (Mass.) and graduated in 2007 with a degree in psychology and philosophy.

Claiborne, 37, enters his second season as the Yankees’ assistant pitching coach and his sixth as a coach in the Yankees organization. Prior to joining the club’s Major League staff, Claiborne spent four seasons as a coach in the Minor Leagues for the Yankees, serving as a pitching coach for Single-A Tampa (2024), High-A Hudson Valley (2023) and the FCL Yankees (2021-22). He was scheduled to serve as the pitching coach for the GCL Yankees West in 2020 before the season was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Dallas, Texas, native was selected by the Yankees in the 17th round of the 2010 First-Year Player Draft out of Tulane University (La.) and spent five seasons in the organization (2010-14). He made 62 Major League relief appearances with the Yankees from 2013-14, going 3-2 with a 3.79 ERA (71.1 IP, 75 H, 32 R/30 ER, 24 BB, 58 K, eight HR). He also made one Major League appearance with Texas in 2017.

Druschel, 50, rejoins the Yankees as an assistant pitching coach, marking his fifth season on a Major League coaching staff and his seventh season in the Yankees organization. He served as the Mets’ assistant pitching coach in 2025 after holding the same position for three seasons for the Yankees from 2022-24.

He began his first stint with the Yankees as the organization’s manager of pitch development (2019-21). Prior to joining the Yankees, Druschel spent five years at the University of Iowa, serving as the team’s pitching coach from 2017-19 after working as their director of baseball operations from 2014-17.

Druschel began his coaching career as an assistant coach at Vinton-Shellsburg H.S. (Iowa) in 1998 before joining the collegiate ranks at Indiana University from 1999-2000. He spent five years (2000-04) at Mount St. Clare College (Iowa), serving as an assistant from 2000-01 before taking over as head coach from 2001-04. From 2004-14, Druschel worked at Mount Mercy University (Iowa), serving as an assistant from 2004-05 before being promoted to head coach (2005-14).

The Vinton, Iowa, native played baseball and basketball at Upper Iowa University and Mount Mercy University (Iowa) from 1994-98. He earned his master’s degree in athletic administration from Indiana University in 2001.

Rowson, 49, enters his third season as the Yankees’ hitting coach, his 12th season on a Major League coaching staff and his 24th season in professional coaching. The Yankees were named the American League Silver Slugger Offensive Team of the Year for the second straight year in 2025 after leading the Majors in home runs (274), slugging percentage (.455), OPS (.787), walks (639), intentional walks (47), total bases (2,488), runs scored (849), runs per game (5.24), extra-base hits (549) and times on base (2,065). The club also ranked second in pitches per plate appearance (3.96, first in AL), third in on-base percentage (.332, second in AL), were tied for third in sacrifice flies (54, first in AL), fourth in on-base percentage with runners in scoring position (.354, second in AL), fifth in OPS with RISP (.786, second in AL), tied for eighth in stolen bases (134, tied for fourth in AL) and ninth in slugging percentage with RISP (.431, fourth in AL).

The Yankees’ 274 HR in 2025 were their second-most in a single season in franchise history and the sixth-most by any team in Major League history, trailing only the 2023 Atlanta Braves (307), 2019 Minnesota Twins (307), 2019 Yankees (306), 2019 Houston Astros (288) and 2019 Los Angeles Dodgers (279). Their 849 runs scored were 34 more than their 2024 total (815) and their most in a season since 2019 (943).

Prior to rejoining the Yankees, Rowson spent the 2023 season as the Detroit Tigers’ assistant hitting coach after serving as the bench coach for the Miami Marlins from 2020-22. He also served as the hitting coach for the Minnesota Twins from 2017-19.

The Mount Vernon, N.Y., native also spent nine years in the Yankees organization from 2006-11 and 2014-16, serving as the Minor League hitting coordinator in seven of those seasons (2008-11, ’14-16). He was also the hitting coach for Single-A Tampa from 2006-07. In between his stints with the Yankees, Rowson spent two seasons with the Chicago Cubs organization (2012-13), originally serving as their Minor League hitting coordinator before being named the Cubs’ Major League hitting coach in June 2012.

Rowson began his coaching career with the Los Angeles Angels organization, spending four years as a Minor League hitting coach with Single-A Rancho Cucamonga (2004-05), Single-A Cedar Rapids (2003) and Rookie-level Provo (2002).

He was originally selected by the Seattle Mariners in the ninth round of the 1994 First-Year Player Draft out of Mount St. Michael High School in the Bronx. The former outfielder played three Minor League seasons with the Mariners (1995-96) and Yankees (1997) before playing in the Independent Heartland League in 1998.

Dykes, 35, enters his fifth season as an assistant hitting coach for the Yankees. Prior to joining the club’s Major League coaching staff, he served as the hitting coach for Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre in 2021. Dykes had been assigned to serve as the hitting coach for the Yankees’ Double-A Trenton affiliate in 2020 before the season was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Prior to joining the Yankees, he spent one season (2019) as the hitting coach at Indiana University, where the Hoosiers won the Big Ten regular season championship and led all of Division I in home runs during the regular season. He also served as hitting coach and recruiting coordinator at Virginia Military Institute from 2015-18. Dykes began his coaching career as an assistant at his alma mater, Western Kentucky, from 2013-14. He played four seasons at Western Kentucky (2009-12), graduating with a bachelor’s degree in sport management before completing his master’s in athletic administration in 2014.

Hirst, 30, enters his first season as the Yankees’ assistant hitting coach and seventh season in the Yankees organization. Prior to joining the Yankees’ Major League coaching staff, he served as the organization’s Minor League hitting coordinator in 2025 after spending a year as the Yankees’ assistant Minor League hitting coordinator in 2024. He also served as the hitting coach for Double-A Somerset from 2022-23, High-A Hudson Valley in 2021 and the GCL Yankees West in 2019. He had been assigned to be the hitting coach for Single-A Charleston in 2020 before the season was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Hirst began his coaching career as an assistant coach at Augustana College (Ill.) for two seasons from 2017-18. The Davenport, Iowa, native received his bachelor’s degree in exercise science from Central College (Iowa), where he played baseball for four seasons (2013-17). He also earned his master’s degree in exercise physiology from St. Ambrose University (Iowa).

Rojas, 44, enters his fifth season as the Yankees’ third base and outfield coach. Prior to joining the Yankees, Rojas spent 16 years with the New York Mets organization (2006-21), including two seasons as the club’s manager (2020-21). During that span, the Mets went 103-119 (.464) in 222 games.

Rojas was the sixth Dominican-born manager in Major League history. His father, Felipe Alou, was the first when he managed the Montreal Expos (1992-2001) and San Francisco Giants (2003-06) after his 17-season Major League career. Luis and Felipe were the sixth father-son duo to both serve as Major League managers, joining Buddy and David Bell, Aaron and Bob Boone, Connie and Earle Mack, George and Dick Sisler and Bob and Joel Skinner. His brother, Moises Alou, also played 17 seasons in the Majors with seven different teams.

In 2019, Rojas served as the Mets’ Major League quality control coach. Prior to joining the Mets’ Major League staff, Rojas managed Double-A Binghamton (2017-18), Single-A St. Lucie (2015-16), Single-A Savannah (2012-14) and the GCL Mets (2011). Rojas also served as a Minor League coach for Single-A Savannah in 2010 and held the same role for the GCL Mets from 2008-09. He spent his first full season in the Mets organization in 2007 with the Dominican Summer League team after joining the organization in 2006.

Rojas also served as the general manager for Leones del Escogido in the Dominican Winter League for three seasons (2022-25) after managing the club for three years from 2015-18. He led Leones to two Dominican Winter League Championships, winning one as the team’s general manager (2024-25) and one as manager (2015-16), while also winning the 2025 Caribbean World Series. He also managed the Dominican Republic National Team in the WBSC Premier12 tournament in 2019.

During his playing career, Rojas spent time in the Minor League systems of the Baltimore Orioles (2000), Florida Marlins (2001-02) and Montreal Expos/Washington Nationals (2003-05).

Fiorito, 35, enters his first season as the Yankees’ first base/infield/baserunning coach and his ninth season as a coach in the Yankees organization. Prior to joining the Yankees’ Major League coaching staff, he served as the Yankees’ Minor League outfield/infield coordinator from 2024-25 after working as the organization’s roving infield/outfield instructor from 2022-23. He managed in the Yankees' Minor League system for three years, serving as the manager of Double-A Somerset in 2022, High-A Hudson Valley in 2021 and the GCL Yankees East in 2019. Fiorito had been slated to manage the Yankees’ former short-season Single-A Staten Island affiliate in 2020 before the Minor League season was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. He spent the 2018 season as a defensive coach at Single-A Charleston after making his professional coaching debut as a defensive coach with Rookie-level Pulaski in 2017.

The Yonkers, N.Y., native was signed by the Yankees as a non-drafted free agent on Aug. 21, 2012. He spent four seasons in the Yankees' system as an infielder, batting .240 (264-for-1,102) with 107 runs, 52 doubles, six triples, seven HR and 98 RBI in 322 career Minor League games.

Fiorito played for three years at Manhattanville College in Purchase, N.Y., where he was named to the 2012 ABCA All-America Third Team, making him the first male two-time All-American in the school’s history. He was also named the 2012 NCBWA Mid-Atlantic Region Player of the Year. He graduated from Fordham Prep in the Bronx in 2008.

Swanson, 43, enters his seventh season as the Yankees’ director of catching and his third as the club’s Major League field coordinator. According to Baseball Savant, Yankees catchers ranked third in the Majors in 2025 in shadow strike rate (45.2%, second in AL) and catcher framing runs (16, second in AL).

Since joining the Yankees in 2020, Yankees catchers lead the Majors in catcher framing runs (73, Baseball Savant), rank second in shadow strike rate (48.6%, first in AL – Baseball Savant) and third in defensive runs saved (39, second in AL – FanGraphs).

Swanson previously served as the club’s quality control/catching coach and director of catching from 2020-23. Prior to joining the Yankees, he spent two seasons (2018-19) as the Minnesota Twins’ Minor League catching coordinator. The Seattle, Wash., native also spent nine seasons at various levels of collegiate baseball, including a five-year stint as a volunteer assistant coach at the University of Washington (2013-17), where he also briefly served as the school’s director of baseball operations for one season (2012). During his tenure as a coach at Washington, his catchers garnered three All-Pac-12 Conference selections, with two also being selected in the first three rounds of the First-Year Player Draft. He also served as head coach at Green River Community College (Wash.) in 2011.

He was a lecturer in the School of Physical Education and School Health, while also serving as an assistant coach at his alma mater, Central Washington University, in 2010. In 2009, he was an assistant at Everett Community College (Wash.), and in 2008, he taught and coached baseball at Sultan High School.