The Los Angeles Dodgers have parted ways with co-hitting coach Aaron Bates, ending a 12-year tenure with the organization just weeks after president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman signaled no changes were planned for the 2027 coaching staff. The decision, first reported by MLB Trade Rumors and confirmed to MLB.com by a source, stems from an inability to reach a new contract agreement, creating an unexpected shake-up as the team enters the offseason.
A Sudden Departure From a Planned Continuity
At the start of the offseason, Friedman had set a clear expectation: the coaching staff would remain intact for the upcoming season. However, the reality on the ground proved different. Bates, who had been a key architect of one of baseball’s most formidable offenses, could not agree on the terms of a new multi-year deal with the front office, as confirmed by the California Post. This leaves Robert Van Scoyoc, who has served as the other half of the co-coaching duo since 2019, poised to lead the hitting department solo next season. The Dodgers are reportedly weighing the addition of another instructor to the major league staff to fill the void left by Bates’s exit.
A Legacy Built on Offensive Prowess and Recent Struggles
Bates’s journey with the Dodgers was a steady climb through the organization’s ranks. He began as a rookie-ball hitting coach in 2015, progressed through Single-A and High-A, and eventually became the assistant minor-league hitting coordinator in 2018. His promotion to the major league staff came in 2019 as an assistant hitting coach before being elevated to co-hitting coach alongside Van Scoyoc in 2023. Under their dual leadership, the Dodgers’ offense was a statistical juggernaut, leading the league in scoring, batting average, and OPS over the last four years. This culminated in back-to-back World Series championships in 2024 and 2025.
Dodgers part ways with hitting coach Aaron Bates.
But the tape tells a different story. The most recent campaigns exposed critical flaws in the offensive approach. After the All-Star break in 2026, the Dodgers’ bats went cold, culminating in a complete sweep by the eventual World Series champion Milwaukee Brewers in the NLCS. The team’s postseason performance was alarming, hitting a combined .185 in the NLCS after a .203 average during the 2025 World Series. With the split coming down to contract terms, the question now is whether a fresh voice can address the inconsistencies that marked the past two Octobers.
Finding Bates's Successor
This move marks an unexpected shake-up to a staff the club had planned to keep intact, and it comes with implications for how the Dodgers move forward. Internal candidates like game-planning and communication coach JT Watkins and Triple-A hitting coach Dylan Nasiatka are in the mix for a bigger role.
The Dodgers are parting ways with hitting coach Aaron Bates, MLBTR has learned. The Dodgers offered Bates a multiyear contract to stay, but the two sides couldn’t agree to terms. He’d been in the organization for 12 years.
The timing is critical. While Van Scoyoc’s return provides stability, the search for Bates’s successor will be a key storyline of the offseason. The question remains: who will the Dodgers bring in to refine their offensive blueprint, and will it be enough to break through in the next championship run?
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More on Aaron Bates
BREAKING: The Dodgers are parting ways with hitting coach Aaron Bates after 12 seasons with the organization, per @timdierkes 🚨 LA reportedly offered Bates a multi-year deal but both sides did not agree on specific details. Thank you for everything, Aaron. pic.twitter.com/Oi97kNMF1R
The Dodgers are parting ways with co-hitting coach Aaron Bates, per source, after they failed to agree to a new contract An unexpected change to the Dodgers coaching staff, which was expected to be status quo this winter@timdierkes was on it
Dodgers coaching staff for 2027 is going to look a little different as Aaron Bates reportedly is not returning.https://t.co/Nh9e4LH7Jn
