Blue Jays lose wildly popular coach to the Pittsburgh Pirates

Early on in the 2024-25 MLB offseason, the Toronto Blue Jays have already undergone quite the front-office shakeup. Multiple important figures were let go while former players are joining the fray and some are departing to join other organizations.

First, it was amateur scouting director Shane Farrell jumping ship to join the Detroit Tigers' front office. On Wednesday, news broke that assistant hitting coach Matt Hague is leaving the Blue Jays to take the Pittsburgh Pirates' hitting coach job.

Hague, 39, was an extremely popular figure in the Blue Jays' system, as he played an integral role in the development of the "Buffalo Boys" last year; a group that included the likes of Spencer Horwitz, Davis Schneider, Ernie Clement and Addison Barger. He followed the group to the big leagues and was in the Blue Jays' dugout last season after previously spending time as the Buffalo Bisons' hitting coach.

Pirates hire Matt Hague away from the Blue Jays

A former player himself, Hague spent time on two big-league rosters during a brief career at the game's highest level: the Blue Jays ... and the Pirates. Clearly, he's not moving too far away from organizations he's already familiar with.

It's hard to fault Hague for accepting a new gig elsewhere. The Blue Jays only just recently hired David Popkins as their new hitting coach and, with that spot blocked in Toronto, it makes all the sense in the world for him to take the top spot on another squad.

While the Blue Jays appear to be nearing the end of their latest window of contention, the opposite is true for the Pirates. The team may have finished last in the NL Central last season, but they've got an extremely exciting and promising young core on their hands. Ke'Bryan Hayes at third base, Endy Rodriguez behind the plate, Bryan Reynolds in the outfield and Oneil Cruz at shortstop gives them a lot of players with huge upside in their everyday lineup.

Hague worked with wonders with some of the young guns on the Blue Jays, it's scary to think about how good he can make this Pirates offense with some of the studs on their roster. Either way, congratulations to him on landing this once-in-a-lifetime position.