The Seattle Mariners managerial search seems to be in its home stretch.

On Sunday, it was reported that former Minnesota Twins manager Rocco Baldelli had taken himself out of consideration for the Mariners' manager job, and that there were "mystery candidates" not yet reported that were being considered.

On Monday, MLB.com's Daniel Kramer reported that Seattle is holding in-person interviews with managerial candidates this week.

Kramer's report states that "at least two candidates," former Houston Astros manager Joe Espada and current Chicago Cubs director of player development Jason Kanzler, will interview this week. Baldelli was also scheduled to interview in-person this week before pulling out of the job search, per Kramer's report.

It's not confirmed if this current round of interviews are final stages, although previous reports stated that the Mariners would like to hire a manager by Saturday (Oct. 31). The in-person interviews will be the third overall for Espada and Kanzler, who previously interviewed virtually.

Kramer's wording of "at least two" suggests that there may be more candidates not yet reported on that are scheduled for in-person interviews, but at least two popular names will not be among them.

It was confirmed in the report that former Baltimore Orioles manager Brandon Hyde "was discussed" and Chicago White Sox bench coach Walter McKinven was interviewed, but neither are still in the running.

Espada has been the Astros skipper for the last three seasons and led the team to American League West titles in 2024 and 2026. Houston failed to advance past the wild card round both seasons.

The 51-year-old was the first name confirmed to be in the running for the job. Houston opted not to renew his contract days after he was confirmed to be in the running.

Kanzler has overseen the Cubs' minor league system the last three seasons after serving as a hitting coach with Houston, first in the minor leagues in 2019 before being promoted to the major league ranks in 2022. Both he and Espada were on the Astros coaching staff in 2022.

In his end-of-season news conference, Seattle president of baseball operations Jerry Dipoto said that managerial experience was preferred, but not a prerequisite. Of the two known candidates remaining, only one fits that criteria. And there are few potential candidates available outside of Espada that fit that preference following confirmation of Hyde and Baldelli no longer in the running.

The Mariners' in-person interviews will be extensive, per Kramer's reporting, and will include members of the front office, ownership and coaches from last year's staff retained by the organization. The retained coaches include pitching coach Pete Woodworth and director of pitching strategy Trent Blank, among others. Senior director of hitting strategy Edgar Martinez will also likely be back with the team in some capacity, per Dipoto, but possibly not in his previous role.

This will be the first round of interviews that feature returning coaches, per Kramer, and the decision-makers within the organization will likely get a better idea of the potential fit of the candidates with direct feedback from them.