Dan Wilson Deserved Better Than This

September 27, Dan Wilson managed his final game for the Mariners. They beat the Angels 7-3 to close out a 76-86 season, and afterward he stood at a podium, fought back tears, and told everyone his time as manager had "concluded."

I'm not happy about it.

One bad year

Let's get the obvious part out of the way. 2026 was bad. The M's went from a 90-win division title to a losing record, finished third, and missed the playoffs in a year when Houston won the West at 81-81. We finished five games back. Jerry Dipoto said they were the worst defensive team in baseball and led the league in throwing errors. Nobody's defending that.

But it wasn't just effort and attitude. Injuries hit this team all year. J.P. Crawford and Bryce Miller opened the season on the injured list, Randy Arozarena missed time in June, and Brendan Donovan played only 39 games. The bullpen lost Gabe Speier and Matt Brash for stretches, which piled innings on everyone else until they were worn out by August. John Stanton pointed to a couple of fluke concussions and injuries from collisions too. Jerry made the fair point that plenty of teams still playing dealt with more injuries than we did. But when you're also not hitting and not catching the ball, every missing piece hurts more.

And one year ago, Dan took this team to Game 7 of the ALCS. Jerry himself pointed out that 11 months ago we were seven outs away from the World Series, with roughly the same group of players. That's the closest the Mariners have ever been. Over his three seasons, Dan went 187-171. You don't forget that because one summer went sideways.

We've seen this movie before

The Mariners keep a list of every manager in team history on their website, and if you scroll it, a pattern jumps out. Since Lou Piniella left after 2002, the club has gone through Bob Melvin, Mike Hargrove, John McLaren, Jim Riggleman, Don Wakamatsu, Daren Brown, Eric Wedge, Lloyd McClendon, Scott Servais, and now Dan Wilson.

Whoever gets hired this winter will be the third Mariners manager in four seasons. Swapping the guy in the dugout is the move this franchise reaches for first, and it has rarely fixed anything.

So what about Jerry?

Here's the part I keep coming back to. If the problem is that we need a new direction, Jerry Dipoto sets it. He's heading into his 12th year with the Mariners and in that time he's hired three managers and made the playoffs twice.

To his credit, he didn't dodge it. He said the standard was on him first, that he did an ineffective job of holding everyone accountable, and that if he didn't have a job today, it would be justified. He also said he has full autonomy. Nobody above him is tying his hands.

One reporter pointed out that when Jerry took over 11 years ago, he inherited a team that went 76-86. This year, 76-86.

I appreciate the honesty. I really do. But if the guy at the top says the standard was his responsibility, and he makes every call, and the guy in the dugout is the one who loses his job, that doesn't add up for me. Dan is gone, and so are bench coach Manny Acta, infield coach Perry Hill, hitting coach Kevin Seitzer, and first-base coach Eric Young Jr. The front office that built the roster is all coming back.

Jerry even admitted they didn't do an exhaustive search when they hired Dan, because Dan's interview had basically been 35 years with the organization. When asked why this search will be different, he said, "Perhaps because of that." So the last manager hire wasn't done the right way, and the manager is the one paying for it.

I'm not saying Jerry has to go tomorrow. He built the team that got us to Game 7, and John Stanton makes a fair point that most of a front office's work happens below the waterline, in scouting and the farm system. But if we're doing accountability, it has to go up the chain too, not just down it.

Spend the money

A lot of fans are saying the payroll needs to go up, and I'm with them. Stanton says the Mariners are a mid-market team that has raised payroll each of the last five years. He also said he doesn't want to pay free agents in their 30s for what they did in the past, and would rather draft, develop, and trade.

He's not wrong that a ten-year deal for a 32-year-old can turn ugly. But there's a lot of room between a ten-year mega deal and doing nothing. Developing young players matters. Colt Emerson, Cole Young, and the rest of the kids are a big part of what's next, and I want to watch them grow. But young teams also need guys who've been through a pennant race and a long October. That experience doesn't come out of the farm system. You have to pay for it.

Stanton also said this is the Mariners' 50th season and we still haven't been to a World Series. I agree with him. That's exactly why it's time to spend like it.

Randy and J.P.

Which brings me to Randy Arozarena and J.P. Crawford. Both are free agents this winter, and from everything I'm hearing, we could lose both.

Start with Randy, because his case is easy. He hit .281 with an .865 OPS, hit 26 home runs, drove in 79 runs, stole 26, led the American League with 113 runs scored, and made his third All-Star team. Baseball-Reference has him at 5.7 WAR, the best of his career by a mile. On a team that went 76-86, he was the guy who kept showing up.

Here's what gets me. In the same press conference, Jerry talked about how hard it is for this team to find a right-handed bat who can come into Seattle and produce. Then he said Randy did exactly that, and may have just had the best season of his career. He's right, and the numbers back him up. Jerry even admitted that losing Randy leaves a void that isn't small, especially in left field.

So the guy who solved the problem you can't solve is the guy you're letting walk?

J.P. is a tougher case, and I'll be honest. He had an off year: .221 with a .687 OPS and 14 home runs in 116 games. But you can't look at those numbers without the context. He needed a cortisone shot in his shoulder in spring and opened the season on the injured list. Then he went back on the IL twice more over the summer with hand and wrist injuries. On top of that, he got moved over to third base for stretches after Colt Emerson came up. Three IL stints and a new position is not a recipe for a big year. The year before, when he played 157 games, he was worth 3.6 WAR.

He's also the longest tenured Mariner in that clubhouse. When you just told everyone the problem was culture and accountability, letting your longest-tenured veteran walk without even an offer is a strange way to fix it. A shorter deal could make sense for both sides.

Make the fair offers. If they say no, fine. But make them.

Thank you, Dan. You managed it to the best October it has ever had, and you deserved better than announcing your own exit at a podium. Stanton says he wants to keep you in the organization, and I hope you stay. And Jerry, you've got a manager to hire, a payroll to fight for, and two free agents to call. No pressure. Spring training is only a few months away.