Mariners Notes: Dipoto, Managerial Search, Arozarena

The Mariners have made several changes in the first week of their offseason. Manager Dan Wilson will not be returning. The club moved on from four other coaches. One person who will remain in place is president of baseball operations Jerry Dipoto. The lead exec received the stamp of approval from chairman John Stanton earlier this week. Stanton sat down for an interview with Adam Jude of the Seattle Times. He praised the organization’s drafting, player development, and health during Dipoto’s time at the helm. “All of those things led me to believe that Jerry’s the right guy to lead the baseball organization,” Stanton said. “But we needed to have a new manager, and that manager would work for him. But he would be responsible for delivering that championship at the major-league level.” Dipoto took over as Seattle’s general manager near the end of the 2015 season. He was promoted to POBO in 2021. Dipoto immediately delivered an 86-win season in his first year in charge. Seattle ended a decades-long playoff drought in 2022. The Mariners reached the ALCS last season for the first time since 2001. The club won 90 games for the third time in the past six years. The 2026 campaign didn’t go as planned. The reigning AL West champs played .500 ball for the majority of the season. That was enough to keep them in the playoff race in a watered-down American League, but Seattle faded in the second half. The team went 28-37 after the All-Star Break and finished third in the division. The Mariners have had very little turnover at manager since Dipoto took over. He hired Scott Servais in 2016. Servais spent eight years in charge before giving way to Wilson during the 2024 season. Stanton confirmed that Dipoto will “lead the process” to find a new manager. The organization is reportedly looking for an experienced skipper. While the managerial search will be a priority, the Mariners are also going to be in the market for a new left fielder. Free agent Randy Arozarena is expected to test the market. Jude reiterated that point in an article today outlining the reasons the outfielder won’t be back with the club. That included a comment from Dipoto at Monday’s press conference seemingly hinting at the team’s plans. “Obviously, we have free agents coming up,” Dipoto said. “We need to refill those voids, and they’re not small voids to refill, especially Randy in left field, but we are excited about our young players.” Arozarena slotted in at No. 4 in the final edition of our Free Agent Power Rankings. He put together a tremendous season in his final year with Seattle, posting a 151 wRC+ with 26 home runs and 26 stolen bases. Arozarena scored a career-high 113 runs as a key catalyst in the Mariners’ lineup. As far as Arozarena’s landing spot, Jude notes that he prefers to play on the East Coast. The veteran spent the majority of his career in Tampa Bay before getting dealt to Seattle ahead of the 2024 trade deadline. Arozarena lives in Tampa and wants to join a team that has spring training in Florida, per Jude. Seattle can extend Arozarena a qualifying offer and will receive draft pick compensation if he declines, which is the likeliest scenario. Photo courtesy of Joe Nicholson, Imagn Images