Mariners Announce Minor League Staff

Mandatory Credit: Steven Bisig-USA TODAY Sports

The Seattle Mariners announced their Mnor League coaching staffs on Wednesday and heading the list of moves was the announcement that Rich Donnelly has been named the manager of the Triple-A Tacoma Rainiers.

Donnelly has been in professional baseball for 43 years, starting as a catcher with the Minnesota Twins in 1967 and spent four years in the minors before heading into coaching. His coaching resume includes 26 years as a coach at the Major League level and the last three years as the manager of the Mets’ Class-A Brooklyn Cyclones.

Former Seattle bullpen coach Jaime Navarro enters his 6th season in the Mariners organization, now as the pitching coach in Tacoma.

Cory Snyder, the hitting instructor at Double-A Jackson the past three years, has been promoted to that same job at Tacoma.

Former Rainiers manager and Mariners third-base coach Daren Brown will be a roving instructor overseeing bunting and baserunning in the Minor League system.

Mariners Hall of Fame members Dan Wilson and Alvin Davis are both roving instructors. Wilson begins his first season overseeing catchers. Davis continues with his role as special assistance coordinator.

Other roving instructors who’ll work with all of the Mariners’ Minor League squads include field coordinator Jack Howell, pitching coordinator Terry Clark, rehab pitching coordinator Gary Wheelock, hitting coordinator Lee May Jr., infielder coordinator Jim Pankovits, outfield coordinator Brant Brown, Latin America field coordinator Jose Moreno and Latin America pitching coordinator Nasusel Cabrera.

James Horner takes over as the manager at Double-A Jackson, Eddie Menchaca will manage Class-A Advanced High Desert and Chris Prieto was named the head man at Class-A Clinton.

Pitching coach Lance Painter and hitting coach Roy Howell, who were each part of Horner’s High Desert staff in 2013, will join him in those same roles in Jackson.

Former Clinton pitching coach Andrew Lorraine joins Menchaca in High Desert, while Max Venable has been hired as High Desert’s hitting coach in his first year in the organization.