Yankees announce 2016 coaching staff

NEW YORK -- The New York Yankees officially announced their coaching staff for next season, and as expected, only hitting coach Jeff Pentland took the fall for the team's early playoff exit in 2015.

Aside from Alan Cockrell, Pentland's assistant last year who was promoted to hitting coach, everyone else remains in their jobs -- Larry Rothschild as pitching coach, Rob Thomson as bench coach, Joe Espada as third base coach and Tony Pena as first base coach. Pena also was named catching instructor.

In addition, the Yankees promoted Marcus Thames, who had been a minor league hitting instructor, to Cockrell's assistant and brought back Mike Harkey, an old friend of manager Joe Girardi's, as…