Rocco Baldelli Among Candidates To Become Next Mariners Manager

Rocco Baldelli, currently a special assistant in the Los Angeles Dodgers front office, is among the candidates the Seattle Mariners have interested in for their vacant managerial job, per Jon Heyman of the New York Post.

Former Houston Astros manager Joe Espada has already interviewed with the Mariners, and they reportedly held interest in former New York Mets manager Carlos Mendoza before he was hired by the Philadelphia Phillies as their new third base coach under Don Mattingly.

Seattle was granted permission by Houston to speak with Espada about their manager position before he was officially dismissed by the Astros.

The Mariners are conducting a managerial search after firing parting with Dan Wilson. He took over managerial duties in 2024 and led the Mariners to 90 wins in his first full season in 2025. However, the Mariners disappointed this year and Wilson announced on the final day of the regular season he was not returning in 2027.

Baldelli has been part of the Dodgers organization since December 2025. The addition came not long after Baldelli was fired as manager of the Minnesota Twins.

Upon getting let go, Baldelli said he remained interested in managing again. He had been linked to the Los Angeles Angels’ and Washington Nationals’ openings before they hired Kurt Suzuki and Blake Butera, respectively.

Baldelli joining the Dodgers in a special advisor role marked a reunion with president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman. Baldelli’s playing career overlapped with Friedman’s stint as Rays general manager. And after retiring, Baldelli joined the Tampa Bay front office to work with Friedman as a special assistant.

Baldelli remained with the Rays as a coach for four seasons after Friedman was hired by the Dodgers to lead their front office.

Rocco Baldelli’s managerial career with Twins

Baldelli was hired by the Twins for his first managerial job in 2019. He guided the team to a 527-505 record over seven seasons before being let go at the end of the 2025 campaign.

Baldelli was named American League Manager of the Year in 2019 and helped the Twins win three AL Central titles during his time with the team. When Baldelli was named AL Manager of the Year in 2019, it coincided with the Twins winning 101 games, their second-most in franchise history for a single season.