Cubs Hire Daniel Moskos as Assistant Pitching Coach
As Russell Dorsey of the Sun-Times was first to report, the Cubs are hiring Daniel Moskos as their new assistant pitching coach. Though he will not really be a direct replacement for Mike Borzello, the jack of all trades who held the title of associate pitching coach, Moskos will certainly assume some of those vacated responsibilities.
Moskos, 35, was the pitching coach for the Yankees’ Double-A affiliate. The former first-round pick will presumably take on some of the duties left by Mike Borzello, who left the organization last month. https://t.co/vedv5VzWym
— Russell Dorsey (@Russ_Dorsey1) November 15, 2021
Drafted fourth overall by the Pirates in 2007 out of Clemson, just one spot after the Cubs took Josh Vitters, Moskos spent over a decade playing professional baseball and totaled 31 MLB appearances with Pittsburgh in 2011. He spent time at Triple-A with the White Sox and was briefly a member of the Cubs organization after signing a minor league deal in 2016, but never pitched for them.
Following his playing career, Moskos worked as a throwing trainer at Driveline Baseball and then joined the Yankees organization as a pitching coach. He was supposed to have been with Class-A Charleston before the minor league season was canceled in 2020 and served as the pitching coach for the Double-A Somerset Patriots this past season.
I’d be lying if I said I had any insight beyond what Baseball-Reference and Wikipedia provide, but I’d be willing to bet Moskos fits what the Cubs are trying to do from a developmental standpoint. New hitting coach Greg Brown worked as a scout and minor league coordinator, now the Cubs have a pitching coach who comes from a system respected for its pitching development.
Tommy Hottovy is already in place as the head pitching coach, so this is far from an earth-shattering move. It’s notable, however, that Moskos has experience with an outfit known mostly for its radical methods and focus on increasing velocity. Pair that with Jed Hoyer’s stated desire to add power arms and the puzzle pieces fit together.
If I had to guess, I’d say Hottovy will assume even more of the strategic duties left by Borzello’s departure while Moskos will deal a little more with the mechanical side of the house. That’s really oversimplifying things, so please leave a little room in that statement. I would also assume the Cubs see Moskos as an excellent communicator who is able to relay his knowledge and experience in a way his new charges will be able to digest easily.
Now we just need to see the Cubs go out and actually get some of those hard-throwing pitchers for him to work with.
