Seattle Mariners Coaching Staff: Mariners Make Impressive Hire Away From Yankees

The Seattle Mariners have hired a new bench coach to pair with new manager Jason Kanzler, according to a report on Friday from Joel Sherman of the New York Post.

Tanner Swanson, who is a Washington native and Central Washington graduate, had been with the New York Yankees for the last seven years as a catching coordinator, and he was also recently promoted to major league field coordinator.

As noted by Sherman, the Yankees catchers achieved much success under his guidance.

In the seven seasons Swanson was in charge of the Yankees’ catchers, they easily led the majors in various framing statistics, most notably catcher framing runs.

While Swanson will have other responsibilities now, his presence could be a big one for M's catcher Cal Raleigh, who won the Platinum Glove in 2024 for his work behind the plate. Raleigh struggled more in 2026, especially in the framing and throwing departments.

While Swanson has no major league bench coach experience, he has managed before. He previously served as the head coach at Green River Community College in 2010-11. He's also been an assistant at Everett Community College, the University of Washington and Santa Clara University. He was the bench coach for Great Britain during the 2026 World Baseball Classic, where former M's catcher Harry Ford was the team's starter.

There had been some talk that the Mariners could hire both Kanzler and former Astros manager Joe Espada, with one being the manager and one being the bench coach, but that clearly hasn't materialized. After missing out on the M's managerial job, it's unclear if he'll take another job in baseball or take a year off.

Kanzler's staff is starting to take shape, though there are more spots to fill. While it hasn't been officially announced by the team, we know that CJ Gillman is set to be the hitting coach. The Mariners are also looking for a baserunning coach and a first base coach to replace Eric Young Jr., who was let go at the end of the season.

The latest edition of the 'Refuse to Lose Territory' podcast is out, as we talked with ESPN MLB Insider Buster Olney about the hiring of Kanzler. He gave his impressions, as well as what he's hearing from sources around the game.

You can watch in the YouTube player below: