Mariners Fire Manager After Underachieving Season
On the heels of the big fat egg laid by the Mariners this season, significant coaching changes are coming to Seattle. Once considered a team that was going to challenge for the American League West crown (and a few experts even picked them as AL Champs), the Mariners were named the MOST underachieving team by a panel of experts on the MLB Network.
Despite adding Nelson Cruz, Robinson Canoe, and a handful of other highly touted players and some good prospects, Seattle sputtered to a 4th place finish in the AL West, ahead of only the Oakland A's. The A's were expected to founder, as they lost or traded away 6 of their All-Star players who led them to the playoffs. But the Mariners were expected to compete. The only team considered to perhaps be a bigger let-down than Seattle would have been the Washington Nationals, who many said would win the World Series. This despite the performance of Felix Hernandez and Cruz, who was among the league leaders in home runs.
After a 76-86 record that left them 12 games out of first place, Seattle announced the following changes: