It appears as though there is one more major coaching departure within the New York Mets’ ranks, after all, as the club and first-base coach Antoan Richardson were unable to reach an agreement on a new contract.
ESPN’s Jeff Passan was first to report of the breakdown in negotiations, and that Richardson is now expected to depart from the Mets.
The 42-year-old was seen as the engineer of New York’s elite running game. The team set a league record by successfully stealing 39 straight bases, while Juan Soto swiped a career-high 38 bags in his debut campaign in Queens. His previous career-best was 12.
As a team, the Mets stole 147 bases out of 165 attempts.
“Antoan did an unbelievable job,” Soto said of Richardson after he joined the 30-30 club. “I think I gave him all the credit. He’s the one who put me in this situation and in this spot to do what I’ve done.”
Richardson was one of the only coaches from manager Carlos Mendoza’s staff who were invited to stay with the Mets next season after their historic collapse resulted in a shocking postseason miss. Bench coach John Gibbons, pitching coach Jeremy Hefner, third-base coach Mike Sarbaugh, along with hitting coaches Eric Chavez and Jeremy Barnes, all departed the team shortly after the end of the 2025 campaign.
Assistant pitching coach Desi Druschel has returned to the Yankees after being given permission by president of baseball operations David Stearns to speak with other teams. He spent one year with the Mets after working in the Bronx from 2022-2024. He is expected to replace Mike Harkey as the Yankees’ bullpen coach.
Richardson’s departure creates one more void to fill, as the Mets have been methodically reshaping their coaching staff. Former Giants bench coach Kai Correa has been brought on in the same capacity and Troy Snitker will take over as hitting coach.
