The San Diego Padres, reeling in their quest to reach the playoffs this season, fired their decorated pitching coach, Larry Rothschild, on Monday.

Rothschild, 67, was in his second year with the Padres and spent the previous 18 years as a pitching coach for the New York Yankees and the Chicago Cubs.

The Padres (68-58), who traded for Yu Darvish, Blake Snell and Joe Musgrove over the offseason, have lost nine of their last 11 games and currently sit a game back of the Cincinnati Reds for the second wild-card spot in the National League.

Snell and Chris Paddack, a promising rookie in 2019, have underperformed, while first-round pick Ryan Weathers, one of three healthy starting pitchers, has struggled mightily of late.

In a statement, Padres manager Jayce Tingler said: "Larry has been a tremendous asset for our organization over the last two seasons, and we appreciate the experience, hard work and dedication that he brought to the position. We wish him nothing but the best in the future."

Ben Fritz will be the Padres' interim pitching coach for the rest of the season.