Aaron Bates Is Gone, Van Scoyoc Remains. Is J.D. Martinez the Missing Piece?

The Dodgers don't need another hitting guru. They need hitters who can adjust when the other team has a better plan. So, the Dodgers' offseason just got a little more interesting.

Aaron Bates is leaving the Los Angeles Dodgers after spending 12 years in the organization. Robert Van Scoyoc is expected to remain, and the Dodgers will be looking for someone to help oversee an offense that was statistically among the best in baseball in 2026.

But there is more to this story than meets the eye. I have talked to a few "insiders," and they are closed-lipped. One said:

"I'm sure it has something to do with the way the offense completely went into the dumpster at the All-Star break and stayed there the rest of the season. But I don't blame the hitting coaches for that. I blame the fact that Shohei, Freddie Freeman, Mookie Betts and Will Smith got very old very quickly. Almost overnight."

Another person, who is speculating, said he thought Bates wanted "more control" and would like to run his own show. RVS is the head hitting coach by all accounts, and maybe Aaron just wants to run his own show. I don't think there is anything sinister about this.

First, let's get something straight. The Dodgers apparently did not fire Aaron Bates. They offered him a multi-year contract, but the two sides could not reach an agreement. We don't know whether the disagreement involved money, responsibilities, philosophy, or something else.

We do know that Bates was a valued member of the organization. Andrew Friedman certainly wasn't talking about cleaning house when he said he expected the coaching staff to return.

So, Bates is gone, and Van Scoyoc remains. Maybe it was as simple as this: Aaron Bates and RVS may not see eye to eye on everything, and maybe Aaron Bates wants to be the Top Dog and prove his theory about hitting right. There may or may not be any bad blood. But...

That raises an interesting question.

What if the Dodgers replaced Bates with J.D. Martinez?

Before anyone starts reporting that Martinez is headed back to Los Angeles, let me make something abundantly clear: I have not seen any credible report that the Dodgers have contacted Martinez about a coaching position, nor do I know whether he would be interested. This is speculation. But it's speculation with some pretty interesting history behind it.

A Little History Lesson

Robert Van Scoyoc is one of the most influential hitting instructors of the past decade. Interestingly enough, he never played professional baseball. That doesn't disqualify him from being a great hitting coach. Some of the best teachers in sports were never great players.

Van Scoyoc worked with Craig Wallenbrock, and together they helped transform the career of J.D. Martinez. He was a struggling Houston Astros outfielder who had not established himself as a major-league hitter. After the 2013 season, he worked with Wallenbrock and Van Scoyoc to overhaul his swing.

The results were remarkable.

• In his three seasons with Houston, Martinez had a .687 OPS.

• In 2014, his first season with Detroit, he posted a .912 OPS.

• He eventually became one of the premier power hitters in baseball, hitting 45 home runs in 2017 and signing a $110 million contract with the Boston Red Sox.

That's not a minor adjustment. That's a complete transformation.. and Van Scoyoc was instrumental in making it happen. But here's something that often gets overlooked. The relationship wasn't a one-way street.

Martinez wasn't simply a student listening to his instructor. He was an intelligent, analytical hitter who contributed his own thoughts about hitting mechanics, pitch recognition, and attacking pitchers. Van Scoyoc understood the mechanics.

Martinez understood what it was like to stand in the batter's box against the best pitchers on the planet. They learned from each other. That combination is worth thinking about.

Enter Mookie Betts

When Martinez joined the Boston Red Sox, he developed a relationship with Mookie Betts.

In 2018, Betts won the American League MVP while hitting .346 with 32 home runs and a .640 slugging percentage. Betts has credited Martinez, Van Scoyoc, and members of Boston's coaching staff with helping him refine his swing.

Think about that for a minute. Van Scoyoc helped Martinez. Martinez and Van Scoyoc helped Betts. And all three eventually ended up with the Dodgers.

When Martinez signed with Los Angeles in 2023, his existing relationships with Betts and Van Scoyoc were important factors. There was already trust. There was already a shared understanding of hitting and a history of success.

That doesn't mean Martinez would automatically become a great hitting coach, but he certainly wouldn't be walking into unfamiliar territory.

Was the Dodgers' Offense Really That Bad?

Here is where the discussion gets interesting.

• The Dodgers scored 801 runs in 2026, fourth in baseball.

• They hit .257, third in MLB.

• Their .762 OPS ranked second.

• Their 111 wRC+ also ranked second.

Those are outstanding numbers. If you look only at those statistics, you might conclude that the Dodgers' hitting coaches deserve raises, not criticism. But baseball games aren't played on spreadsheets. After the All-Star break, the Dodgers scored 295 runs, ranking 11th in MLB during that period. They also hit just 77 home runs, tied for 11th... and then came October.

The Milwaukee Brewers swept the Dodgers in the NLCS. All those impressive regular-season statistics didn't mean much when the Dodgers couldn't get the hits they needed.

Now, I don't blame Aaron Bates or Robert Van Scoyoc for every bad at-bat. Players have to execute, and good pitching beats good hitting more often than most fans want to acknowledge. However, I do believe there is a legitimate question about how effectively the Dodgers adjust when opposing pitchers figure out their weaknesses.

Because that, my friends, is where championship baseball is played.

The Definition of Insanity

Albert Einstein is often credited with saying that insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results, though there is little evidence he actually said it; whoever did had a pretty good point.

• How many times have we watched Dodgers hitters continue to chase the same pitch?

• How many times have we watched a pitcher exploit the same weakness, inning after inning?

• How many times have we seen the Dodgers face a pitcher with an outstanding fastball, only to watch hitter after hitter arrive late?

• And how many times have we watched a hitter try to hit a five-run home run with nobody on base?

I understand launch angle.

I understand exit velocity.

I understand OPS, wRC+, barrel rates, and all the other statistics that have changed baseball.

I even understand why teams emphasize hitting the ball in the air.

But sometimes the pitcher has a better plan. And when that happens, the hitter had better come up with Plan B.

If a pitcher is throwing 100 MPH at the top of the strike zone, maybe you need to shorten your swing. If he's throwing sliders off the plate, maybe you need to make him throw a strike. If the defense is giving you an entire side of the infield, maybe putting the ball in play isn't such a terrible idea. And if you have a runner on third with fewer than two outs, maybe a sacrifice fly is worth more than another attempt to hit a ball into the parking lot.

I know that sounds terribly old-fashioned. So am I.

But I also know that baseball games are won by scoring more runs than the other team.

There is no trophy for the highest average exit velocity.

Don't Blame Aaron Bates for Everything

One thing I discovered while researching Bates is that his hitting philosophy was considerably more sophisticated than simply telling hitters to launch the baseball.

In a 2019 FanGraphs interview, Bates discussed plate discipline, quality of contact, swing efficiency, and situational hitting. Here is the link to the entire article: AARON BATES TALKS HITTING

He talked about rewarding the process rather than obsessing over the outcome of an individual at-bat. He also emphasized understanding when to be aggressive and when to take a pitch.

In fact, during the 2025 season, Bates and Van Scoyoc worked on improving situational hitting through detailed video sessions and discussions about executing a game plan. They were not oblivious to the problem. They were attempting to solve it. That's an important distinction.

And when the Dodgers were trying to help Max Muncy handle high fastballs, Bates and Van Scoyoc worked together on adjustments designed to improve his ability to make contact. These guys know hitting. The question isn't whether they understand mechanics.

The question is whether the Dodgers need another perspective.

That's Where J.D. Martinez Comes In

Martinez would bring something to the Dodgers' hitting department that Van Scoyoc cannot. He spent years facing major-league pitching. He knows what it's like when a pitcher has you completely fooled. He knows what it's like to make an adjustment between at-bats. He knows what it's like to change your approach when the scouting report says one thing and the pitcher does another. And he understands that hitting isn't just about the swing.

• It's about preparation.

• It's about recognizing patterns.

• It's about having a plan.

And sometimes it's about abandoning that plan because the other guy has figured it out. Would Martinez be interested in becoming a hitting coach? I have no idea. Would he be good at it? That's impossible to know until he actually does the job.

Being a great hitter and teaching 26 different personalities how to hit are two very different things. But Martinez has a history of helping other hitters, including Mookie Betts. He also has a longstanding relationship with Van Scoyoc. That makes him an intriguing candidate, at least in my mind.

And I would certainly make the phone call.

What About the Kids?

This is another reason I think the next hitting coach matters. The Dodgers have some impressive young hitters moving through the organization. Josue De Paula may have one of the most advanced approaches of any Dodgers prospect. Mike Sirota has an intriguing combination of power and athleticism. James Tibbs III has legitimate offensive potential. Alex Freeland is another young player who could figure prominently in the Dodgers' future.

These players do not all have identical swings, identical strengths, or identical weaknesses. Nor should they. One of my biggest concerns with modern baseball is the temptation to turn every hitter into the same hitter. Everybody wants to hit the ball hard. Everybody wants to elevate. Everybody wants to hit home runs. There's nothing wrong with any of those things.

But baseball needs more than one kind of hitter. Some players are going to hit 35 home runs. Others may hit .300, steal bases, work counts, and make life miserable for opposing pitchers. A lineup needs balance. And young hitters need coaches who recognize what makes each player successful rather than trying to manufacture another version of Mookie Betts or Shohei Ohtani.

I have always believed that the Dodgers should be willing to trade a player a year too early rather than a year too late. I believe something similar about player development. Sometimes you have to give the kids an opportunity before they are completely polished.

And then you have to let them learn. That takes patience. It also takes good teachers.

The Elephant in the Room

The Dodgers are getting older. Freddie Freeman isn't getting younger. Neither is Max Muncy. Mookie Betts has a lot of baseball miles on his body. Teoscar Hernández isn't exactly a kid. Even Shohei Ohtani, magnificent as he is, cannot outrun Father Time forever.

The Dodgers cannot continue assuming that a veteran-laden lineup will perform at peak efficiency for six months and then suddenly find another gear in October. There has to be a plan to manage workloads, develop younger players, and make adjustments as the season unfolds. Andrew Friedman has already acknowledged that more proactive rest for veteran hitters might be part of the solution.

I agree. But rest alone won't fix an approach that isn't working against certain pitchers. And there is no guarantee that a lineup filled with future Hall of Famers will automatically hit its way through October. As we just witnessed, it won't.

So, What Would I Do?

First, I would keep Robert Van Scoyoc.

His record of helping hitters improve is too substantial to ignore. Second, I would make sure the next hitting coach complements him rather than simply duplicating his strengths. I don't need two guys standing around telling a hitter the same thing.

I want different perspectives. One coach may see a mechanical problem. Another may see a pitch-selection problem. Another may recognize that the hitter is simply trying to do too much. Good organizations need people who can disagree constructively, challenge assumptions, and find solutions.

Third, I would call J.D. Martinez.

Not because he's a familiar name. Not because he played for the Dodgers. And not because I think every former star would make a good coach. I would call him because his relationship with Van Scoyoc, his understanding of hitting, and his experience facing major-league pitchers might make him an excellent complement to the existing staff.

I'd want to know how he approaches a struggling hitter. I'd want to know how he prepares for an opposing pitcher. And I'd want to know what he'd do when a hitter's carefully designed swing wasn't working. If his answers impressed me, we'd talk some more.

Final Thoughts

Aaron Bates deserves credit for his contributions to the Dodgers organization. Twelve years is a long time, and the fact that the Dodgers offered him a multi-year contract suggests they valued what he brought to the table.

I wish him well.

Robert Van Scoyoc deserves credit, too.

He's helped transform some outstanding hitters, and the Dodgers have fielded some exceptional offenses during his tenure. But the Dodgers don't need to win another statistical championship. They need to win baseball games when the other team's pitchers have a plan to neutralize their offense.

They need hitters who can adjust. They need situational hitting. They need young players who bring energy and athleticism to an aging roster. And they need coaches who are willing to challenge hitters rather than simply reinforce what those hitters already believe.

Could J.D. Martinez be part of that solution?

Maybe.

I certainly think he's worth a conversation.

But regardless of whom the Dodgers hire, I hope the organization understands one thing.

The best swing in baseball isn't worth much if you keep swinging at the wrong pitch. And sometimes, the smartest thing a hitter can do is forget about hitting the ball 450 feet and concentrate on hitting it 90 feet. That's still a hit. And sometimes, it's the hit that wins the game.

What say you, Dodger fans? Would J.D. Martinez be a good addition to the Dodgers' hitting staff, or should Andrew Friedman look in another direction?

It's your turn.

Rants & Raves

• It was mentioned yesterday that Mike Sirota has not been to AAA yet. Yes, he has. He has six At-bats at OKC where he was 2-for-6 with an OPS over 1.000. OK, it is a small sample...

• It is rumored that the Dodgers are interested in LH Reliever Adrian Morejon. It is my opinion that Vesia will not be back.

• Miguel Rojas has been working with Chuck Davalan on his defense in the AFL.