On the heels of a second straight ALDS exit for the New York Yankees, there were already more than enough items on Brian Cashman's to-do list, from an upgrade on Ryan McMahon at third base to a platoon partner for Austin Wells to a bullpen that will need to be almost completely rebuilt. And then, in the span of just a few hours, New York's GM learned he'd have not just one but two coaching vacancies that need to be filled.

On the same day that former bench coach Brad Ausmus became the Houston Astros' next manager, former hitting coach James Rowson was scooped up by the San Francisco Giants. That's two of the senior-most roles on Aaron Boone's coaching staff now up for grabs, with precious little time to find replacements before the sport gets plunged into a lockout — and any new hire would be unable to even talk to his players.

Where some might see a crisis, though, Cashman should see an opportunity. After all, it's not like major changes didn't need to be made anyway; Rowson, in particular, had come under fire thanks to the Yankees' offensive collapse down the stretch of the 2026 campaign. New York has a chance to finally bring its entire operation into the modern world, provided they get both of these hires right. Here's where they should look first.

Bench coach: Andrew Bailey, Boston Red Sox pitching coach

How sweet would this be? New York's pitching operation is already among the best in the sport under Matt Blake. But Bailey and Craig Breslow have built one heck of a development machine in Boston, too, and it's about time he started working his way up the org chart somewhere.

So why not in the Bronx? Before winding up with the Red Sox in the winter of 2023, Bailey interviewed for the Yankees bench coach position, only to have the job eventually go to Ausmus. He's done nothing but improve his stock around the game since, and if his acumen, clubhouse presence (he pitched in the Majors for eight years) and ability to clearly communicate data weren't enough, there's also the added benefit of robbing your arch rival of a key voice.

Hitting coach: Russ Steinhorn, Washington Nationals upper level hitting coordinator

Much ink has been spilled over just what's gone wrong with the Yankees' offense of late, and for good reason: It's cost the team in each of the last two postseasons, and things straight-up fell off a cliff this year after Aaron Judge went down with injury at the end of May. For as cutting-edge as the pitching operation is, there's plenty of smoke to suggest that the hitters are the opposite, resistant to the sort of analytical information that might help them improve.

So why not pull from a team that's already demonstrated not only a familiarity with those analytics, but an ability to get buy-in on them as well? Few teams saw more improvement in their hitters this season, both at the Minor and Major League level, than the Washington Nationals did in year one under new lead exec Paul Toboni. Remember that this is the same organization that turned Curtis Mead from a busted former top prospect into bat good enough to fetch Connelly Early in a trade with the Red Sox.

As the person in charge of their hitting program at the upper levels of the Minors, Steinhorn was presumably an integral part of implementing those changes, and he could be an invaluable resource in finally getting this Yankees offense to listen to outside voices rather than stubbornly slamming their head into the same wall over and over again.