Mets hire Chip Hale as 3B coach

According to Greg Hansen of the Arizona Daily Star the Mets have hired Chip Hale as their third base coach.

Hale played seven seasons (1989-1997) in the majors all with the Twins aside from his last year with the Dodgers. He was a lifetime .277 BA with an OBP of .346 and a Slg. Pct. .363. He was a member of the 1991 Minnesota Twins World Series Championship team. During his career he played approx. 60 games at 2B, 3B and DH, while playing 17 gms. at 1B, 4 gms. in RF and 1 gm. SS.

A graduate on the University of Arizona he returned to the state to begin his managerial career. Prior to becoming the D-Backs 3B coach he was very successful in Arizona's minor league system.

When Bob Melvin was let go early in the season, Hale was rumored to be in line for the position but when he was passed over by the end of the season he became the new scapegoat...

Hale is back in the bigs; he signed a contract with the New York Mets on Tuesday and will be their third base coach in 2010. He was dismissed from a similar position by the D’backs a month ago when the club chose to make him the figurative scapegoat for a 70-92 season.

Didn’t take long for another organization to understand what a skilled baseball man Hale is.

Hale won the Class AAA championship as manager of the Tucson Sidewinders in 2006. he also won minor-league championships while managing Class AA El Paso and Rookie League Missoula. source AZstarnet.com