There will be changes in the Rangers’ offensive hierarchy for 2025.
Or should we say “Hyers-archy?”
Tim Hyers, the hitting coach for the last three seasons, has joined the Atlanta Braves as their hitting coach, replacing Kevin Seitzer, whom Atlanta did not bring back after a 10-year run. Hyers, 53, is an Atlanta native who still lives in the metro Atlanta area. Between the end of a big league playing career and starting as a scout, Hyers had given private hitting instruction in the Atlanta area.
In a text exchange with The Dallas Morning News, Hyers said the decision kept him “sleepless” for several days because of his affinity for the Rangers organization, but the chance to move closer to home was an important factor.
Rangers president of baseball operations Chris Young, who was traveling this week, had said at the end of the season that all coaches had been invited back for the 2025 season. But the Rangers also didn’t stand in the way of advancement. Both offensive coordinator/bench coach Donnie Ecker and associate manager Will Venable have interviewed for the Chicago White Sox managerial job. Ecker is no longer in the mix.
The Hyers move is a bit different as it is technically a lateral move, though he was second-in-command of the Rangers’ offensive approach. He joined the Rangers for the 2022 season, when the hitting staff was revamped, that saw the team bring in two sitting hitting coaches from different clubs to run their offense.
Ecker came from San Francisco and took on the title of bench coach/offensive coordinator, Hyers came from Boston as hitting instructor. He had also previously served as an assistant hitting instructor with the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2016-17. At every stop of his major league coaching career, Hyers’ team has won a World Series.
In the second year of the Ecker-Hyers tandem, the offense was explosive, averaging 5.44 runs per game with a .790 OPS. Both figures ranked third in MLB. The Rangers, however, had a significant downturn in 2024, largely due to difficulty hitting the fastball. Adolis García, Jonah Heim and Leody Taveras all had long skids. The Rangers ranked 18th in runs per game and 23rd in OPS at .690.
The Rangers are expected to conduct a search for a hitting instructor to work alongside Ecker, but have some internal candidates who could move up including assistant hitting instructor Seth Conner, who has been key in offseason workouts in Arlington for the three years he’s been on the staff, minor league director of hitting Cody Atkinson, who has a longstanding working relationship with Ecker, and roving minor league hitting instructor Sharnol Adriana, who spent a significant portion of the season with the big league team.
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