Mariners former manager could be top candidate to join one of their biggest rivals

Scott Servais could be a top candidate to take the open manager job in San Diego.
Seattle Mariners v Los Angeles Dodgers
Seattle Mariners v Los Angeles Dodgers | Brandon Sloter/GettyImages

Former Seattle Mariners manager Scott Servais could soon be interviewing for a second chance to manage in Major League Baseball.

After being dismissed from the Mariners in August of 2024, Servais took a job as a special assistant to the San Diego Padres, a role in which he has served throughout 2025. Now, San Diego has a surprising opening at the head coach slot, as manager Mike Shildt just announced his retirement yesterday.

With San Diego now looking for a new skipper, Servais could potentially be under consideration. After all, he's already in the building, and he has a proven rate of success. It would make some logical sense.

Scott Servais is a natural candidate to be the Padres' new manager

Servais spent almost nine full seasons in Seattle and posted a record of 680-642, good for a .514 winning percentage. Five of his seven full seasons resulted in winning campaigns, marking a solid turnaround for a Mariners franchise that had been starving for wins before he arrived. His worst season was 2019, when the Mariners went 68-94, but it's hard to blame Servais for the disaster that was 2019. The Mariners front office traded away almost the entire team during the previous offseason, leaving him with nothing to work with.

The point is, Servais is a good manager. And again, he's already familiar in the San Diego organization.

It would be weird seeing such a familiar face coach for such a common foe of the Mariners. Of course, the Mariners and Padres have been interleague rivals for a while now, with their annual series now renamed "The Vedder Cup."

Seattle won the Vedder Cup in 2025, but it would be a whole new ballgame if San Diego were rolling with the M's former manager at the helm next year. Suddenly, the series might become personal for Servais.

Nothing is official yet, but watch for Servais' name to be thrown around as a potential candidate. He'll likely return as a manager eventually, and this could be a good landing spot for him.

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