Mariners hire Kanzler as manager to replace fired Wilson - ESPN

The Seattle Mariners are hiring Jason Kanzler, the Chicago Cubs' director of player development, as their new manager, the club announced on Tuesday.

Kanzler, 36, succeeds Dan Wilson, the longtime catcher who oversaw one of baseball's most disappointing teams this past season. The Mariners made it all the way to Game 7 of the American League Championship Series in 2025 and were a popular pick to advance to their first World Series in 2026 but never got it together, ultimately finishing 76-86 and failing to make the playoffs despite playing in a mediocre division.

Kanzler will inherit one of baseball's deepest, most talented teams, one stocked with starting-pitching depth and headlined by two superstars in Cal Raleigh and Julio Rodriguez. He will also be tasked with helping to diagnose what went wrong in a year in which almost all of the Mariners' best players struggled offensively and their pitching somehow abandoned them down the stretch.

A former outfielder who was drafted in the 20th round in 2013, Kanzler previously spent five years in the Houston Astros organization, serving as a major league coach in 2022 and 2023. The Cubs hired him as their director of player development at the start of 2024 and watched him help in the development of young players like Pedro Ramirez, Matt Shaw and Pete Crow-Armstrong.

Former Astros manager Joe Espada was reportedly also a finalist for the position, but the Mariners valued Kanzler's combination of intelligence, intensity and creativity and believe he will help players continue to develop in the major leagues, which they see as crucial to a roster featuring several up-and-coming young players.

Mariners general manager Justin Hollander said in a statement that Kanzler «consistently