The Padres have the worst batting average in Major League Baseball and are the only team in the big leagues with a sub-.300 on-base percentage. Regardless of roster composition when that happens someone has to fall on the sword.
On Friday the Padres parted ways with hitting coach Alan Zinter. The team says they will find a full-time replacement in the off-season while coaches on the staff will fill Zinter's shoes for the rest of the 2017 season. Bench coach Mark McGwire, who was the Dodgers hitting coach for a while, is a likely candidate to help in the interim.
Zinter joined the Padres in 2015 when Manager Andy Green brought him on to his staff. A proponent of timing steps and launch angles, Zinter helped increase San Diego's power numbers. The Padres are 18th in the league in home runs but the high-risk, high reward approach also contributed to the 4th-most strikeouts in the game.
For several years the Friars have had a major issue with situational hitting (for example, driving in runners from 3rd base with less than two outs instead of striking out). For a relatively young but talented roster that is an important lesson to learn.
