Mike Barnett

Michael Lee Barnett

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 5' 11", Weight 175 lb.
• School Ohio University

• Born February 1, 1959 in Columbus, OH USA

Biographical Information

Mike Barnett was a catcher at Ohio University before a shoulder injury ended his baseball career. He graduated with a degree in sports administration. Barnett became one of the few coaches to reach the major leagues without any professional playing experience.

Barnett began his coaching odyssey in 1978 as a bullpen catcher for his hometown Columbus Clippers in the Pittsburgh Pirates organization. He kept the same role from 1979-1981 when the Clippers became an affiliate of the New York Yankees. In 1982 the Yankees named Barnett an Assistant Administrator of Baseball Operations & Video Director. In this position, Barnett learned the value of video work well before most other baseball coaches. He remained in this role through the 1987 season. Barnett moved to the college coaching ranks as an assistant coach at the University of Tennessee from 1988 to 1989 and served as the Volunteers' interim head coach in 1989 after the resignation of Mark Connor.

Barnett joined the Chicago White Sox organization as a hitting coach for the South Bend White Sox of the Midwest League in 1990. He moved to the Florida State League's Sarasota White Sox for the 1991 and 1992 seasons. He was the hitting coach for the Birmingham Barons in the Southern League from 1993 to 1995, the Hickory Crawdads (South Atlantic League) in 1996, and the Gulf Coast White Sox (GCL) in 1997. Barnett worked as the Tucson Sidewinders' hitting coach from 1998 to 2001.

In 2002, Barnett joined the Toronto Blue Jays as the team's hitting coach. Barnett retained this position until the Blue Jays fired him on April 25, 2005 and replaced him with Mickey Brantley. While with Toronto, he helped turn their roster into a top-10 hitting club in his each of his three full seasons. Barnett was not out of work for long. The Boston Red Sox hired him as a non-uniformed hitting instructor on May 21st. A longtime friend of manager Terry Francona, Barnett was available to work with hitters before games, but spent the actual games in the clubhouse reviewing video.

Barnett began the 2006 season as a Kansas City Royals' minor league hitting instructor. On May 1st he replaced Royals hitting coach Andre David who effectively switched places with Barnett. After taking over as hitting coach, Barnett led the Royals to a .275 (1,339-4,867) average the remainder of the season. The Royals hit a franchise-record 335 doubles in 2006, the 4th-highest total in the major leagues. Barnett retained this position until being let go after the 2008 season.

In 2009, Barnett was the Houston Astros' minor league hitting coordinator, a position he returned to in 2010. In 2011, he succeeded Jeff Bagwell as the big league team's hitting coach. He was fired along with manager Brad Mills and first base coach Bobby Meacham on August 18, 2012 with the team in last place and in danger of setting a new franchise record for losses for the second straight year.

In 2013, Barnett returned to the Blue Jays organization as their Minor League Hitting Coordinator where he stayed through the 2015 season. From there he moved to the Cleveland Indians in 2016 in the dual capacity of Major League Replay Coordinator & Staff Assistant. He continued in those roles through the 2023 season. As a staff assistant, he helped the team's hitting coaches prepare scouting reports. Manager Terry Francona retired (or so it was believed) after the 2023 season and Barnett plus two other coaches were let go before a new Guardians manager was hired.

Barnett also served as the hitting coach for the United States in the 2001 Baseball World Cup and the 2006 Olympic Qualifiying Tournament.

Blue Jays Hitting Coaches
Previous	Current	Next
Cito Gaston	Mike Barnett	Mickey Brantley
	2002 to 2005

Related Sites

• Interview with battersbox.ca