Jack Zduriencik has now been trying to navigate this Mariner ship for the last 5 years and for the third time in those 5 years he has announced a new Manager; Lloyd McClendon. Of the three finalists on the board for the 2014 Mariners managerial job, Lloyd McClendon beat out Joey Cora and Chip Hale. Is McClendon the best option out of the three? I don’t know. I will reserve that judgment until we get into the season. But is he the manager I would have chosen if I were Jack Z.? Absolutely not.
Jack Zduriencik has an uncanny ability to look deep into the future and gain hope. The way he talks about the future in interviews and press conferences it gives Mariners fans who haven’t seen the postseason in over a decade a slight sliver of hope. But in this situation I wouldn’t be trying to find the long-term solution in my next manager. I would be specifically working on staying afloat.
Jack Zduriencik is losing his fan support quickly. It is no longer the days of “In Jack We Trust” and more of the days where fans are questioning his every decision. You may say that fans don’t decide a General Manager’s job but in this case the fans will. Last season the Mariners came in 2nd to last when it came to home stadium attendance percentage compared to maximum capacity. Mariner’s fans only filled up on average 45.4% of the stadium; 0.01% higher than the last place Cleveland Indians. If Jack Z and this team continue to lose fan support these owners will not hesitate to pull the plug on the Jack Z era in Seattle. On the other hand, if Jack Z. hired Joey Cora over Lloyd McClendon he would have been able to tread water for at least a couple of years.
Joey Cora is apart of the “untouchable” 90’s Mariners team that Seattle fans still religiously adore. If you hire a member of that “untouchable” team as the face of the Seattle Mariners bench you immediately loosen the reigns on your season. Jack Z. will no longer be frowned upon for his rebuilding mentality and you would then have two years to get a new coach adjusted to the head-coaching job that he has previously only held at the minor league level. Fans would support Joey Cora and understand his failures and subsequently support Jack Z. Even if Joey Cora ends up not being the right fit for Manager and you have to let him go those two years buy you time to get these young prospects into the big leagues. At that point, Jack Z can base his resume around acquiring key young talent through the draft even if he couldn’t find the right manager.
Instead, Jack Z. went with the guy with the most managerial experience and subsequently gave himself less leeway on errors for this season and next. If Lloyd McClendon comes out on Opening Day (March 31st) and adds to his current 446 career losses as a manager, fans will immediately be on him and Jack Z. This is no longer a rebuilding process with the hiring of Lloyd McClendon. That opportunity is lost the minute you grab the guy with experience over the bench coaches with no big league managerial head coaching experience (i.e Joey Cora and Chip Hale).
With all that said, there is still one thing that changes the thought process of any sports town; winning. If Jack Zduriencik found a hidden gem in McClendon and he whips these young players into shape, they produce at the plate, and more importantly they win, well then Seattle fans will go back to praising and congratulating Jack Zduriencik. Here is to an interesting and hopefully great offseason that I personally hope is not the last of Jack Zduriencik’s career.
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