Yankees Rumors: Michigan's Chris Fetter Interviewed for Pitching Coach Opening

University of Michigan pitching coach Chris Fetter reportedly interviewed for the New York Yankees' vacant pitching coach position.

According to ESPN's Jeff Passan, Fetter is considered a "rising star" and has garnered interest from multiple MLB teams, including the New York Mets.

The Yankees are in search of a new pitching coach following the firing of Larry Rothschild this week. Rothschild had served as New York's pitching coach since 2011.

Fetter is a former pitcher at Michigan who ranks first in school history in career innings pitched, third in wins and third in strikeouts. In 2009, the San Diego Padres selected him in the ninth round of the MLB draft.

After a four-year stint in the minor leagues, Fetter served as a minor league scout for the Los Angeles Angels and then as the pitching coach at Ball State University before Michigan hired him as its new pitching coach in 2017.

Last season, Michigan posted a cumulative ERA of 3.46 under Fetter, and it reached the College World Series before falling to Vanderbilt in three games.

The Yankees are coming off a 103-win season and an appearance in the American League Championship Series, but they ranked just 14th in Major League Baseball with a team ERA of 4.31. New York was also 15th in the league with a 4.51 starters' ERA.

Among those who started at least five games for the Yanks in 2019, only James Paxton posted an ERA under 4.00, and it required him to go on a tear down the stretch to get his ERA down to 3.82.

Masahiro Tanaka (4.45 ERA), J.A. Happ (4.91 ERA) and CC Sabathia (4.95 ERA) all struggled at various points, and injuries limited Luis Severino to just three regular-season starts.

If Fetter gets the job in New York, he will inherit a talented staff nonetheless with Paxton, Tanaka and Severino leading the way among starters, plus a stacked bullpen that includes Aroldis Chapman, Zack Britton, Adam Ottavino, Tommy Kahnle and Chad Green.

The Yankees may also be active on a free-agent market that could include starters Gerrit Cole, Stephen Strasburg (if he opts out), Madison Bumgarner, Jake Odorizzi, Cole Hamels, Hyun-Jin Ryu and Zack Wheeler, among others.