Former Seattle Mariners infielder Joey Cora was dismissed as the third base coach of the Detroit Tigers on Tuesday, with manager AJ Hinch saying that the decision was based purely on baseball.

MLBTradeRumors provided some data points on Detroit's baserunning successes and failures, though that's not really of importance to us here. What's important to us is that Cora is a beloved former member of the M's, having played for the organization from 1995-98.

Cora was a part of the 1995 Mariners that are widely credited with saving baseball in the city of Seattle. That group made the first playoff run in team history, advancing to the American League Championship Series. Cora was an All-Star in 1997 as well and finished his career with Cleveland in 1998.

Sure, but it likely won't be this year considering all the coaching spots on Dan Wilson's staff are filled.

Wilson has had a habit of bringing in former M's players to spring training over the last two years, including Randy Johnson, Alvin Davis, and Franklin Gutierrez. Not all of them have coached, but they have been present. Other former M's, like Ichiro, Edgar Martinez and Michael Saunders either are, or have been, on staff.

If Cora doesn't find a full-time job in baseball for 2027, there's a chance he could fit that bill as well. Of course, Cora's brother Alex was let go as the manager of the Boston Red Sox earlier this season. Should Alex Cora want to manage again in 2027, he could take Joey with him.

-- Seattle went 5-1 on a recent six-game homestand and has also thrown two consecutive shutouts.

The starting pitching was incredible over those six games, as Seattle starters allowed just six runs in six games, and the pitching staff as a whole threw three shutouts against the Los Angeles Angels and Toronto Blue Jays.

We took a deeper dive into the reasons for success here. 

--On Feb. 2 of this year, the Mariners acquired All-Star utility player Brendan Donovan in a three-team trade involving the St. Louis Cardinals and Tampa Bay Rays.

Seattle sent a top pitching prospect, Jurrangelo Cijntje, to St. Louis, along with another solid prospect in Tai Peete. The M's also lost a compensatory draft pick in the deal and sent third baseman Ben Williamson to the Rays.

Williamson was drafted by the Mariners in the second round of the 2023 MLB Draft out of William & Mary and made his debut in the 2025 campaign, playing in 85 games as the M's eventually won the American League West crown.

We caught up Williamson this week to talk about his time in Seattle, the trade and much more.

The latest edition of the 'Refuse to Lose Territory' podcast is now out, and it features former Mariners' 3B Ben Williamson. You can listen here, or you can watch the YouTube player below.

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