Yankees name Rothschild pitching coach

The Yankees' spring training address helped them land one of baseball's most experienced pitching coaches.

More than a month after Larry Rothschild exercised an option in his contract to return for his 10th season as the Chicago Cubs' pitching coach, he was introduced Friday as the Yankees' surprise choice to replace Dave Eiland, who was not brought back.

Speaking on a conference call with reporters, Rothschild said he was lured away not by the power of the pinstripes, but rather a workplace closer to his Tampa home. He said he lives "a mile or two" from Steinbrenner Field.

Calling the Yankees' job "a situation that's hard to pass by," the 56-year-old Rothschild said he's been interested in finding a team that trains in Florida to be closer to home. The Cubs spend spring training in Arizona.

"It's a long two months added on to the season," Rothschild said. So he quietly requested permission from Cubs general manager Jim Hendry to speak with the Yankees after Eiland was let go, and the Yankees reciprocated his interest.

General manager Brian Cashman left the GM meetings early this week so he could return to New York to interview Rothschild on Wednesday. By Friday, the two sides had agreed to a three-year contract.

Rothschild already has worked closely with Yankees manager Joe Girardi. In Rothschild's first year with the Cubs in 2002, Girardi was the team's backup catcher.

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"We were comfortable together," Rothschild said. "Talking about hitters and going through things, he was a veteran at that time, and to a pitching coach, he was really helpful."

Girardi, who also is signed for the next three seasons, described Rothschild in a statement as "an excellent teacher who brings a professional attitude and a keen sense of preparation to his craft."

Rothschild said he planned to start calling Yankees pitchers to get acquainted immediately after finishing Friday's 20-minute conference call with reporters. He hopes to meet with several of them at the team's facility through the winter, especially in the weeks leading up to when pitchers report in mid-February.

He's already seen extensive video of three of the pitchers. Rothschild said a large part of the Yankees' interview process revolved around watching "seven or eight hours" of video of CC Sabathia, Phil Hughes and A.J. Burnett and discussing his observations the next day during his interview with Cashman.

Rothschild's resume includes a four-year run as Tampa Bay manager - he went 205-294 as the franchise's first manager when the team was known as the Devil Rays - along with stints as pitching coach with the Reds and Marlins. He called this interview process "much different" than anything he had ever gone through before.

"It wasn't just a question-and-answer session," Rothschild said. "It was something more definitive, more about what you saw when you watched video of six different hitters and three different pitchers, the matchups and some other different things, along with statistics. It was very in-depth, and I think it led to more in-depth conversations during the interview process."