Brandon Hyde is the most interesting name in Mariners 'wide net' manager search

It's clear that the Seattle Mariners are going to take their time finding a new manager, and that's OK. They need to get this one right. They also have the advantage of being one of just two teams with an open gig, and the other just opened up on Wednesday when the Houston Astros moved on from Joe Espada.

Espada is in the running to jump ship to the Mariners, but it feels like a remote possibility. Per Adam Jude of The Seattle Times, the Mariners' initial short list of candidates had 40 names on it. Most of those names remain a secret, though Jon Heyman of the New York Post dropped some breadcrumbs on Tuesday.

Rocco Baldelli did some good work with the Minnesota Twins between 2019 an 2025, with a .511 winning percentage and a peak of 101 wins. David Ross won two World Series as a player and, if nothing else, learned a thing or two in four years managing the Chicago Cubs.

Yet if there's a name worth circling here, it's Brandon Hyde.

Hyde is best known as Mike Elias' top lieutenant as he worked to dig the Baltimore Orioles out of the mud in the late 2010s and early 2020s. Peaks and valleys were the result. Hyde experienced two 100-loss seasons. He also experienced a 100-win season.

His overall winning percentage was only .461, and the Orioles canned him 43 games into his seventh and final season in 2025. The returns were well into a pattern of diminishment at that point, and the whole vibe was just plain bad.

Brandon Hyde has a fascinating mix of qualities that could be perfect for the Mariners

Still, what Jon Morosi of MLB Network said on "Wyman and Bob" about Hyde never having enough pitching in Baltimore rings true. Elias largely focused his player development on bats, so it's no real wonder that the Orioles ranked in the top half of the American League for ERA exactly once in the Hyde era.

Even knowing how sour things went in 2026, this would be less of a problem for Hyde in Seattle. The Mariners do need to reassess their whole approach to pitching, but the arms are good. Hyde never had a Logan Gilbert in Baltimore, much less a Logan Gilbert and a George Kirby, Bryan Woo, Bryce Miller, Emerson Hancock and Kade Anderson, with Ryan Sloan waiting in the wings.

As for the young bats that Hyde oversaw with the Orioles, he didn't fumble the opportunity. Gunnar Henderson won the AL Rookie of the Year in 2023, while Adley Rutschman and Colton Cowser finished second in 2022 and 2024, respectively. The Orioles got a league-high 25.0 fWAR from 25-and-under hitters across 2023 and 2024.

In response to Randy Arozarena's likely departure, Jerry Dipoto dropped a hint about being excited about the team's young hitters. That means Colt Emerson, Michael Arroyo and Lazaro Montes in 2027. It could mean Felnin Celesten, Jonny Farmelo and Ace Reese by 2028. That's a lot of talent for a manager to be trusted with, yet Hyde's credentials are as good as they come.

After working under Elias in Baltimore, Hyde spent this year working in between Erik Neander and Kevin Cash as a senior advisor for the Tampa Bay Rays. This is a lot of time around analytically savvy people, with the Rays in particular embodying many of the best hallmarks of modern baseball. This year, they won 98 games and made it to the ALCS by squeezing every last bit of value out of the eighth-lowest payroll in the league.

It's around this time of year that "analytics" tends to become a dirty word, but Mariners fans should know better after two-plus years of Dan Wilson. He was so out of touch that Dipoto had to schedule weekly meetings for last winter that were meant to get Wilson up to speed on the modern game. Alas, he never got there.

It's harder to speak for the vibes Hyde would bring to the clubhouse vis-à-vis the veteran guys, namely Cal Raleigh, Julio Rodríguez and Josh Naylor. When they spoke positively of Wilson, they tended to allude or even outright say how much they appreciated his hands-off approach. That proved to be a bad thing. That doesn't mean a more hands-on approach from Hyde would be better.

One supposes that's for the Mariners brass to suss out if they do pursue an interview with Hyde. All we can say is that they definitely should. It's all about finding guys who bring something to the table, and he brings plenty.

Add us as a preferred source on Google

Follow