Trevor Bauer Gives Strong Endorsement to Yankees' New Pitching Coach Matt Blake

The New York Yankees went off the board and hired former Cleveland Indians pitching coordinator Matt Blake to be their next pitching coach, a clear sign the Yankees are going in a new direction and embracing a more analytics-driven approach.

That notion became increasingly apparent when former Indians starter and current ace of the Cincinnati Reds, Trevor Bauer, came out with some strong support for Blake.

For all the @Yankees fans coming to my page to ask me about @Blake_Matt he’s awesome. One of the smarter guys I know. Knows a lot about pitching. A lot about development. Good communicator. Etc. Really excited for him getting this opportunity and pumped to see the results.
— Trevor Bauer (@BauerOutage) November 8, 2019

If Bauer, who has his nose crammed in the latest analytical trends, is in your corner, you can bet that Blake is authentically intelligent and knows his business despite his relatively tender 33 years of age.

When you’ve got Trevor Bauer giving his vote of confidence for a pitching coach you know he’s great with analytics. Very pumped for Matt Blake. https://t.co/jKeS2FYrkL
— Eric Hubbs (@BarstoolHubbs) November 8, 2019

Based off the Yankees' lack of titanic spending in the last few years compared to their gaudy luxury tax past, it's clear that GM Brian Cashman would like to be able to develop his own guys instead of simply cutting checks to every star free agent. That includes pitching especially, as the Bombers' starting rotation was a relative weakness in 2019.

Well, he's now hired a guy who is well-versed in developing pitchers, and he's been given a vote of confidence by one of the most prolific arms in the game. I'd say the Yankees are well on their way to righting the ship and coming back stronger in 2020.