Brad Ausmus, who served as the Yankees’ bench coach under Aaron Boone from 2024 through 2026, is reportedly headed to the Astros, for whom he played from 1997-98 and then again from 2001 through 2008. He will become their next manager after the recent announcement that Joe Espada won’t be returning for the 2027 campaign.
Astros insider Brian McTaggart had the report; Ausmus will be the first big hire under new GM Randy Flores, who succeeded the dismissed Dana Brown under oft-meddling owner Jim Crane.
Ausmus, a former defensive-minded catcher, has some managerial experience in the majors, having led the Detroit Tigers from 2014 to 2017 and then the Los Angeles Angels in 2019. Before succeeding Carlos Mendoza as the Yankees’ bench coach, he had a stint with the Athletics in 2022, filling the same position.
The Yankees will now have to find a new bench coach. They had already lost Tanner Swanson, who was their major league quality control coach and catching coordinator, to the Seattle Mariners, to become their new bench coach. Matt Blake was extended as pitching coach and both Luis Rojas and Dan Fiorito will remain the base coaches, but James Rowson’s contract as the hitting coach has expired and news just broke that he will become the Giants’ “offensive coordinator.” That, according to head of baseball Brian Cashman, creates a “fluid” situation about who might fill the position.
As for Ausmus, he gets another chance to be a manager in an organization he is very much familiar with from his playing days. He has a combined 386-422 managerial record with the Tigers (2014-17) and Angels (2019), including a division title with Detroit in 2014.
The next few days will be crucial for the Yankees, as they work to fill a coaching staff that has been somewhat raided after recent hires around the league.
