Count former Seattle Mariners outfielder Braden Bishop among the believers in what the M's are doing this offseason with their coaching staff.

Bishop, who spent parts of three seasons in the big leagues with the Mariners (2019-21), was a guest on Wednesday's "Refuse to Lose Territory" podcast and talked about his belief in new manager Jason Kanzler and new bench coach Tanner Swanson, who he knows from his time in college with the Washington Huskies.

And while Bishop is excited, there are critics of the M's decision to hire Kanzler who cite the need for a veteran manager with experience as a skipper, or even as a big league player. Kanzler never got to the majors, instead playing a few seasons in the minors with the Minnesota Twins organization. Just 36 years old, he's been a hitting coordinator with the Houston Astros and the farm director for the Chicago Cubs.

Bishop discussed why he likes the idea of hiring a player without big league playing experience as well.

"...him stepping into an environment where he's comfortable, like using his systems to give resources to the players.

And I think when you just teach, and this is my experience, when you just have people who teach off experience alone, you won't connect with everybody.

And so I think a guy like a Kanzler, like, he doesn't have the playing experience in the big leagues or the managerial experience in the big leagues to teach from that. And so he has to go real deep and figure out exactly 'how do I connect individually with each player?'

I think that's why, in my interactions with him in the past, he was so impactful, was because it felt like, one, he's very intense. He wants to win. And then he also has that ability to connect individually with each player and get the best out of them.

That's key."

The Mariners clearly feel that communication was a problem for the 2026 group. Whether from the front office to the staff, the staff to the players or somewhere else, messages were clearly lost in translation.

The M's believe that Kanzler is an effective communicator and that he can bridge the gaps within the organization.

The Mariners have also clearly identified that player development needs to not stop once a player gets to the major leagues. By hiring Kanzler and Swanson, the M's seem to have oped for "teachers" who can help players continue to ascend even once reaching in Seattle.

This is what great organizations like the Milwaukee Brewers and Tampa Bay Rays are known for. It's no coincidence that those two teams were just playing in the World Series a few weeks ago.

The general manager's meetings will conclude on Thursday, and then the Mariners will have about 2.5 weeks to get deals done before the probable lockout. Seattle is said to be looking for infield help, bullpen help and offensive help.