New hitting coach in Bronx

The Yankees are bringing back a familiar face in hopes of revitalizing their offense.

James Rowson was hired on Monday as the Yankees’ new hitting coach, coming off a season in which the club was among the worst offenses in the majors.

Rowson replaces Sean Casey, who announced last month he would not be returning due to family reasons after being hired midseason when the Yankees fired Dillon Lawson at the All-Star break.

The 47-year-old Rowson previously spent seven years as the Yankees’ minor league hitting coordinator, from 2008-2011 and 20142016. In the second stint he worked with Aaron Judge, among others, and has earned a strong reputation from that experience.

This marks Rowson’s fourth stint as a major league hitting coach after holding the same role with the Cubs from 2012-2013 and the Twins from 20172019. That included the 2019 “Bomba Squad” Twins that hit an MLB-record 307 home runs but also batted .270 as a team.

Rowson went on to serve as Don Mattingly’s bench coach on the Marlins from 2020-2022 before spending last season as the Tigers’ assistant hitting coach.

The Mount Vernon native will be tasked with getting the most out of a Yankees lineup that struggled mightily for most of the 2023 season, outside of Judge and Gleyber Torres. The Yankees’ 4.15 runs per game were the sixth-fewest in the majors while they were also among the least productive in batting average (.227, ranked 29th), onbase percentage (.304, 27th) and OPS (.701, 24th).

While trying to get a veteran like Giancarlo Stanton back on track will be near the top of Rowson’s to-do list, the Yankees will also be looking for him to help their younger hitters take the next step in their major league development. How well Rowson communicates and relates with his hitters will also be vital, as it proved to be the downfall for Lawson, who previously served as the club’s minor league hitting coordinator before getting the top job in 2022.

“You have to be able to partner and connect with your players,” GM Brian Cashman said last week. “If you can’t do that, you won’t be able to hook up your fire hose to let your information flow.

“The culture I want is to make sure we create in that clubhouse — every player has access to what they want,” Cashman added. “The younger guys might gravitate more to tech and analytical information. Older guys might not be as exposed in that world, might not have an interest in that world. So, I need dual threats who can provide on everything.”