Shayne Kelley appointed as Josh Hamilton’s mentor – MLB News
As the controversy involving Josh Hamilton continues to make rounds, the Texas Rangers decided on Tuesday, February 7, to hire an assistant for him. Hamilton had only recently apologised publicly for having consumed alcohol in two bars in Dallas.
The assistant, whose name surfaced as the Major League staff assistant and someone important for Hamilton’s support system, is Shayne Kelley. He obviously comes with a bag of experience with himself.
Kelley has remained a former strength coach in the Kansas City Royals’ Minor League system. Add to it the additional expertise as he has also served as a college baseball assistant coach, making him a suitable candidate for discharging this responsibility.
According to the Texas Rangers’ general manager, Jon Daniels, Kelley was at the top of the list of people who they spoke to over this assignment.
"We talked to a few people, but Shayne was at the top of our list," Rangers’ general manager Jon Daniels said. "We had more interest in this position from people reaching out all over the country than all other positions combined since I have been here."
What rescued Josh Hamilton from landing in bigger trouble was the fact that his drug tests came out negative. While the Texas Rangers has not taken any disciplinary action against their player yet, Major League Baseball has not come up with any action either.
Nonetheless, the Texas’ general manager Daniels was quick to take exception to the term ‘accountability partner’ coined on Tuesday. He stated that there was no such thing as Hamilton is accountable for himself.
"I don't know where that came from ... Josh is accountable for himself," Daniels said. "Our aim is to support him and put him in a position to succeed. If you hire an interpreter for somebody, the guy is still responsible for what he says. Josh is still
accountable for himself.”
With Kelley assuming a new responsibility, it will be interesting to see how he manages things as this is the second controversy that has surrounded Hamilton since 2009, not to mention the one that involved three years of Hamilton’s suspension from 2003
to 2006.
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