Lloyd

McClendon

The Mariners also re-assigned bullpen coach Jaime Navarro to the minor leagues. Willis, who was close friends with former manager Eric Wedge, said he’ll continue to pursue other opportunities and understood that new manager Lloyd McClendon wanted to bring in his own coaching staff.

Athletics bench coach Chip Hale, Dodgers third base coach Tim Wallach and former major league infielder Joey Cora also received second interviews before the Mariners decided on McClendon. McClendon went 336–446 during his five years as the Pirates’ manager, though he didn’t have much talent on hand. He served as the Tigers’ hitting coach for the last seven seasons.

Jewett has been a coach in the Nationals organization since 2009, serving as the third base coach during the 2013 season. Prior to his time with the Nats, he was a long-time minor league manager and coach in the Pirates organization, where he worked with M’s new skipper Lloyd McClendon. He had been seen as a potential successor to Davey Johnson, and did interview to become the Nationals manager this offseason.

Howard Johnson, the club’s now-former hitting coach, is being reassigned to a different role within the organization. Martinez played all 18 of his major league seasons in Seattle, tallying 2,247 hits with an exceptional .312/.418/.515 career slash line. He’s probably the best pure DH in major league history and will bring a fresh perspective to the underperforming M’s offense.

Yankees assistant general manager Billy Eppler has also been called a finalist for the vacancy in Seattle, but it sounds like the top choice to take over for Jack Zduriencik is Dipoto. (Jack Z was fired back in late August). Dipoto served as the general manager of the Angels from October 2011 until this past July, when he resigned after a falling out with owner-backed manager Mike Scioscia.

ESPN’s Jim Bowden was the first to report the news and now the Mariners have confirmed that report. Dipoto will be introduced at a press conference Tuesday morning in Seattle. He served as the general manager of the Angels from October 2011 until July 1, 2015 -- when a fallout with owner-backed manager Mike Scioscia led to his resignation.

Zduriencik has seemingly been on the hot seat for a few years now and it’s not a surprise to see him get the boot in the midst of the Mariners’ disappointing season. Assistant GM Jeff Kingston will handle the GM duties for the remainder of the season, although it’s unclear whether he might be a candidate to get the full-time gig. FOX Sports’ Ken Rosenthal says that the club has already reached out to former Rockies GM Dan O’Dowd.

McClendon was yapping at home plate umpire Sean Barber on his way back to the dugout from visiting his starting pitcher Roenis Elias, and must’ve said the magic words as Barber gave him the early gate. It’s the first time that McClendon has been tossed this year.

Bogar has a long relationship with Mariners new general manager Jerry Dipoto, as he spent the 2015 season as a special assistant to him in Anaheim. He filled in as the interim manager for the Rangers after Ron Washington left midway through the 2014 campaign. Alex Cora is also in the mix for the M’s opening.

Nevin is a hot name among potential managerial candidates, as he’s already interviewed for the openings in Washington, Miami and San Diego. The former big leaguers has been managing in the minors since 2010, most recently with Triple-A Reno in the Diamondbacks organization.