"One of the all-time steroids cheats": Rangers fan split over hiring of Yankees skipper’s brother as hitting coach

New York Yankees manager Aaron Boone's brother, Bret Boone, is a 14-year MLB veteran with three All-Star selections. On Monday, he was hired as the Texas Rangers' hitting coach. The Rangers have struggled offensively in 2025, leading to the firing of offensive coordinator Donnie Ecker.

Bret will join the club on Tuesday ahead of the series against the Boston Red Sox. The Rangers have coaches in the hitting department as Boone will join hitting coach Justin Viele, assistant hitting coach Seth Conner, and will work under manager Bruce Bochy.

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The signing has turned heads among Rangers faithful. Some mocked Boone's alleged steroid use. The former Seattle Mariners second baseman was accused of steroids usage by Jose Canseco in his book.

"One of the all-time steroids cheats, and even though he went nuts with steroids, couldn't sniff the HOF," one fan commented.

"Is he going to give roids to every batter?" another commented.

"Steroid guy," another added.

"He has never coached a day in his life. Concerning," another wrote.

Some fans are looking forward to him making a positive impact on Rangers hitters.

"Best acquisition of the year by a mile," one fan added.

"Welcome Brett!" another fan posted.

"Nice! Love this hire," another wrote.

Rangers president speaks about Bret Boone's hiring

The Rangers aren't having a good season and their hitting has been a concern as they rank last in the majors in runs scored per nine innings. They have a 17-18 record and need to turn things around if they want to contest in the postseason.

Bret Boone comes from a baseball family. His brother, Aaron, is the manager of the Yankees. His grandfather Ray and dad Bob were also MLB players.

Rangers' president of baseball operations, Chris Young, shared his thoughts on the signing.

“Brett is obviously someone who has a significant major league pedigree as a player, somebody who’s well connected to the game through his family," Young said. “Embodies a lot of the characteristics that will make a successful coach and that's what our players need right now."

“Given just the timing of this, we really focused on getting through the end of the year and what our goals are, where we are as an organization, getting to the end of the year and re-evaluating,” Young added. “And for Bret, too, having the flexibility for him to re-evaluate and see if he likes this as well. Both sides were comfortable with the term.”

Boone expressed excitement to join Bruce Bochy and his coaching staff.

"If there is one guy to get back on the field for the first time in a long time for me, it’s Bruce Bochy,” Boone said on his podcast Monday.

It remains to be seen if Boone helps Rangers turn things around on the offensive front.

About the author

Krutik Jain is a journalist who has been reporting on baseball at Sportskeeda since 2022. It was in 2018 when the baseball bug bit Krutik, and already a cricket fan, he credits baseball's rules and Clayton Kershaw's pitching to have hooked him to the game.

A Kershaw and Mookie Betts fan, Krutik rates his favorite team LA Dodgers triumphing over Tampa Bay Rays in the 2020 World Series as his best baseball moment so far. His answer to the perennial "one player from the past you could meet" question is Jackie Robinson. Despite never having seen him play, Robinson's impact, legacy and trail-blazing journey have left an indelible impact on Krutik.

A rigorous fact-checker, Krutik likes reporting on the technical aspects of the game as well as off-field elements. When not watching baseball, Krutik is busy playing cricket, staying up to date with the happenings around the world and hiking.

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Edited by Chaitanya Prakash