ST. PETERSBURG – The Tampa Bay Rays have informed seven-year hitting coach, Derek Shelton, on Tuesday afternoon that his time in Tampa is over. Shelton, who came to the Rays back in October 2009, was surprised by the news and figured if a move like that were to be made it would be after the season was over. Minor league hitting coordinator, Chad Mottola, will take over duties for the remainder of the 2016 campaign. Mottola, 45, had been in his previous position for the last three seasons with the Rays lower levels and knows many of the current hitters and upcoming prospects well.
Interesting to note, Mottola was taken fifth overall in the 1992 draft by the Reds…one pick ahead of future Hall of Famer – Derek Jeter.
Shelton departs as the longest tenured hitting coach in the team’s history.
Information in this article is courtesy of raysbaseball.com and Bill Chastain.
