Mets include Cubs' Mallee in coaching staff search (source)
NEW YORK -- Among the Mets’ hitting coach candidates is one who helped shape this year’s probable National League MVP.
Cubs assistant hitting coach John Mallee is on the Mets’ list of interviewees for their coaching staff vacancy, according to an industry source. He joins a list of publicly known candidates that also includes Kevin Long, as the New York Post reported earlier this week.
Mallee, 57, has served as head hitting coach for the Astros (2013-14), Cubs (2015-17) and Phillies (2018-19). More recently, after a stint in Anaheim, Mallee returned to Chicago to work as an assistant under Dustin Kelly. There, Mallee developed a close relationship with Pete Crow-Armstrong, who developed from a below-average hitter during Mallee’s first season on the staff in 2024 to an All-Star in ’25 and the probable MVP in ’26. This year, Crow-Armstrong led the NL with 45 homers, 119 runs scored, a .570 slugging percentage and a .942 OPS.
Under Kelly and Mallee, the Cubs led the Majors in runs (850), slugging (.428) and OPS (.767).
The Mets, who tied for 20th in runs (699), dismissed director of hitting Jeff Albert after the season, but the club retained hitting coach Troy Snitker and assistant Rafael Fernandez. At the outset of New York’s search to replace Albert, a source said the team was unsure if it would hire a new hitting director over Snitker or another assistant beneath him.
Long, 59, was the Mets’ hitting coach from 2015-17, a three-year period that included two postseason appearances but saw them rank 20th in the Majors in runs per game. Long, who is well known for his philosophy of urging players to pull the ball in the air, received significant credit for Daniel Murphy’s breakout in the 2015 playoffs. After his contract with the Mets expired, Long spent four seasons in Washington, where he developed a relationship with Juan Soto, before moving to Philadelphia, where he helped engineer Kyle Schwarber’s late-career breakout. Earlier this month, the Phillies dismissed Long with two years left on his contract.
The Mets are making some modest changes to their coaching staff under manager Andy Green, who lost his interim tag in September when he signed a three-year contract. In addition to moving on from Albert, the Mets parted ways with quality assurance coach Danny Barnes and batting practice pitcher Kevin Mahoney.