KANSAS CITY -- Along with two new hitting coaches at the big league level in Connor Dawson and Marcus Thames this year, the club will have a different look on the hitting side of player development.
After letting director of hitting performance Drew Saylor go in October following six seasons in the organization and three with that title, the Royals will have two hitting coordinators leading the department this year: Abraham Núñez, who will focus on the lower levels of the system as well as at the Dominican Academy, and Nic Jackson, whose focus will be at the upper levels of the system.
Evaluator Joe Raccuia will also have a hand in this group as someone who can float between scouting and player development while working with newly drafted players as they enter the organization.
Núñez and Jackson were both assistant hitting coordinators for the past three and four seasons, respectively. Núñez has a long history in the organization; following a big league playing career that spanned parts of 12 seasons with the Pirates, Cardinals, Phillies and Mets (1997-2008), he was hired as the Dominican Royals’ hitting coach in 2012. He moved up levels after that, serving as hitting coach with Burlington (‘13), Lexington (‘14), Wilmington (‘15-18) and Northwest Arkansas (‘19-22).
Jackson was hired ahead of the ‘22 season and has served as a hitting coach in the Mets system and a scout with the Cubs after a professional career that included seven seasons of Minor League ball and eight in independent ball.
“Nic and I have built a relationship where we’re always bouncing ideas off each other,” Núñez said. “Always trying to keep each other in the loop at what’s going on at every level. Our communication is really good, and we complement each other. And we learn from each other. For us to be able to work together as one unit, it’s exciting.”
Núñez calls Jackson “The Doctor” because of his biomechanical knowledge, and Núñez brings vast playing experience and the ability to connect with young players, especially international signees. Their different backgrounds and perspectives stood out as they led the organization’s instructional league in Arizona last fall, as did the camaraderie and continuity in processes that Núñez, Jackson and Raccuia shared.
While Royals officials were adding voices to the Major League hitting staff, they began to realize they might have the player development answer already in place: Three coaches who know the system already, who have existing relationships with players and who work well with senior director of hitting performance and Major League hitting coach Alec Zumwalt.
“We just came to the conclusion: Why are we trying to [complicate] things?” general manager J.J. Picollo said. “We have three very capable guys in the Minor Leagues that have done really good jobs from a coaching perspective, that have different backgrounds, which we value, and they have great relationships with Alec Zumwalt. That’s important, because we want to emphasize the continuity from the Major Leagues to the Minor Leagues.”
The top priority for Zumwalt is the Major League team, but the goal is to improve communication for coordinators and coaches at each level of the organization, ensuring that as players move up, their transitions are simple and help them progress, not regress.
Perhaps most important, that includes the jump from Triple-A to MLB, where players are expected to help the team win but face more challenges.
“What we’ve learned these last several years, the handoff process of players from Double-A to Triple-A has been really good,” Zumwalt said. “When we get the big jump from Triple-A to the big leagues, or a player like Jac Caglianone who flew through the Minor Leagues, there’s still some gaps we’ve got to figure out.
“You’ve got players who have built a relationship with a coach, and then he moves up a level, and [the player has] to start over and build a new relationship with a new coach. Our biggest goal is to make sure that all the information is clear for all the coaches to make those transitions as seamless as possible.”
Added Picollo: “The hope here is that Alec can use what he’s learned since becoming hitting coach to make the communication really clear, concise and efficient about what our Minor League coordinators and hitting coaches should be doing to prepare our hitters for the Major League game.”
Zumwalt’s relationship with Núñez dates back to when they were first hired, with Zumwalt joining the organization in 2011 as a pro scout. Zumwalt was part of the hiring process when the Royals brought Jackson and Raccuia on board. He’s ready to see Núñez and Jackson take the next step in their leadership roles, and the promoted hitting coordinators are ready to get prospects prepared for the big leagues.
“We’re proud of the fact that we’ve moved some guys from our system into the big leagues,” Jackson said. “But we want to be better at making sure we’re on top of things, that we’re communicating with [Zumwalt] so he knows everything that’s going on. Streamline the process to make sure everything matches top to bottom as best we can.”