All eyes are on the Diamondbacks to see what happens with manager Torey Lovullo. If he does not return to Arizona after failing short of the postseason for a third straight year, the interest in the longtime skipper s expected to be extensive. And with the Seattle Mariners searching for a new manager after parting ways with Dan Wilson — and preferring someone with previous managerial experience — the two sides have been linked plenty in recent days.
Lovullo, however, has little interest in the Mariners’ managerial opening, sources say.
Among the jobs that could be open include the Philadelphia Phillies and Houston Astros, with Don Mattingly the interim manager in Philadelphia and uncertain to return next season. Lovullo and president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski overlapped in Boston and have a good relationship. The Astros, meanwhile, will determine the status of manager Joe Espada in the coming days — and if they prefer someone with experience, Lovullo could be a fit.
Where will Mariners turn in manager search with Torey Lovullo off the board?
With Lovullo unlikely to wind up in Seattle, there will still be plenty of names for the franchise to pick from. Espada, the Astros’ manager, makes plenty of sense and is expected to draw interest from other teams if he is indeed let go by Houston. Rocco Baldelli, who was the Minnesota Twins’ manager for six seasons, is now a special assistant to the president of baseball operations for the Los Angeles Dodgers. Brandon Hyde, previously the Baltimore Orioles’ manager and American League Manager of the Year winner in 2023, could also be a candidate.
While hiring a manager with previous managerial experience is “preferred,” it is not a “prerequisite,” Mariners executive Jerry Dipoto told reporters.
“Generally speaking, we’re just looking for someone who has high character, a growth mindset, and has the ability to think strategically in the context of a major-league game when that happens quickly,” Dipoto said. “Obviously, we are one of 30 teams in our league. Many would share that same criteria. There are a lot of good people out there, and most of what we’ve done, in recent years especially, has been insular. And I think this year’s failure requires that we look outside to find someone who might be able to poke holes in what we’re doing and help us see something that perhaps we’re blind to. Because obviously, this has not been what we intended nor what we expected from our team.”
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