The Chicago Cubs are on the verge of signing a new hitting coach, Rudy Jaramillo of the Texas Rangers. And they aren’t just going to sign him, they’re going to paaaaaaay him.
Jaramillo turned down the Rangers’ offer to remain their hitting coach last week and is expected to become one of the two or three highest-paid coaches in the game with the Cubs. It is believed he will receive a multiyear deal for about $800,000 per year. Dave Duncan and Mike Maddux are thought to currently be the highest paid coaches in baseball at about $750,000. Duncan’s contract is up, so he will likely regain his spot as baseball’s highest paid coach if he decides to stay in St. Louis. SI.com.
Naturally, if he can turn back the clock on guys like Alfonso Soriano and Geovany Soto, and have them hitting like it’s 2008 again, it will be worth it. But that said, $800k is a whole lot of money to pay for a guy that never takes the field.
Still, one has to wonder if this is a sign of things to come from new owner Tom Ricketts. Will he pay big money to get the right guy – in the dugout, or on the field?