Posted
at
1:36 pm
by By Kirby Arnold New general manager Jack Zduriencik has spent his first full week on the job tweaking the front office, firing scouting director Bob Fontaine and offering player personnel director Benny Looper a demotion that he didn't accept.
There's sure to be more front-office moves to come, but the most important hire in the minds of Mariners fans, not to mention the players, is the manager. Lots of names have emerged, mostly through media speculation. Zduriencik has confirmed only two he is sure to interview -- Jim Riggleman, the man who took over the Mariners after John McLaren was fired in June, and Ned Yost, who guided the Brewers into playoff contention but not the playoffs because he was fired in September.
Zduriencik said last week he wants a manager who's a true leader and a winner. "Someone with energy, someone with baseball experience," he said. "Someone who is a leader and someone we would have confidence in running this ballclub."
Is that Riggleman, a hard-nosed guy who brought discipline to the clubhouse but also a bullpen strategy that had his own pitchers scratching their heads?
Is it Yost, who guided a talented young Brewers team into contention but, for the second straight year, had them crumble under the pressure of September (they hung on to make the playoffs)?
Is it Joey Cora, the bench coach under Ozzie Guillen with the White Sox and the popular little second baseman on the Mariners' 1995 team?
How about Art Howe, who guided Oakland to the postseason three times but never won a playoff series?
Or Bobby Valentine, the volatile veteran skipper who has managed in Japan since 2003?
Or Willie Randolph, who managed the Mets within one victory of the World Series in 2006 but lost his job during a dismal season this year?
Here's your chance to be general manager for a few minutes and choose who you'd like to see manage the Mariners. Pick one of the names listed below or, if you don't like any of them, write in your favorite. As always, you're encouraged to leave a comment.
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