REPORTS: Mike Sarbaugh To Join New York Mets Coaching Staff
At the end of October, it was reported that longtime Cleveland Guardians third base coach Mike Sarbaugh would not be returning to Cleveland’s coaching staff for the 2024 season.
Less than a month after this report, the 56-year-old has already found a new MLB home.
According to SNY’s Andy Martino and MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo, Sarbaugh will become the third base coach of the New York Mets.
Prior to officially departing the Guardians’ coaching staff, he had been with the Cleveland organization since 1990.
Sarbaugh began his time in Cleveland as a Minor League player, reaching as far as Triple-A. In six Minor League seasons, five of which were in Cleveland’s system, he hit .265 with 411 hits, 31 home runs, 207 RBI, 72 doubles, and a .725 OPS in 455 games.
Sarbaugh then began his coaching career following the 1994 season. He was a Minor League hitting coach in Cleveland’s system for the next nine seasons, reaching as far as Double-A Akron from 2000 through 2003.
May 22, 2023; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Guardians third base coach Mike Sarbaugh (16) stands on the field in the first inning against the Chicago White Sox at Progressive Field.
© David Richard-USA TODAY Sports
Then, Sarbaugh served as a manager in Cleveland’s Minor League system for the following nine seasons, compiling a 697-511 record. He led his managed teams to the playoffs in seven of these seasons.
In all, Sarbaugh won five league championships as a Cleveland Minor League manager: the 2004 New York-Penn League Championship with Mahoning Valley, 2006 Carolina League Championship with Kinston, 2009 Eastern League Championship with Akron, and consecutive International League Championships with Columbus in 2010 and 2011.
He then became Cleveland’s first base coach in 2013 before serving as the Guardians’ third base coach from 2014 through 2023. Sarbaugh was also Cleveland’s interim bench coach for the final 63 games of the 2021 season.
As Sarbaugh is now reportedly heading to New York, the Guardians still have yet to find his successor.
