The Seattle Mariners have brought in Jason Kanzler as their new manager, replacing Dan Wilson after a disappointing 2026 campaign. The 36-year-old becomes the 22nd manager in franchise history.

Before joining Seattle, Kanzler worked as the Chicago Cubs’ player development director for three seasons (2024-26). However, Kanzler has no experience as a manager of a professional baseball team.

“I am thrilled to join the Mariners organization and I’m looking forward to hitting the ground running,” Kanzler said, as per MLB.com. “This team has an immense amount of talent in all facets of the game, and my coaching staff and I are excited to unlock this team’s full potential.”

Fans were not happy with this recruitment.

“We won’t be making the playoffs for another decade,” one fan wrote.

Here are more reactions:

Even before he oversaw Chicago’s minor-league system, Kanzler worked with the Houston Astros from 2019 to 2023 in several minor-league coaching and player-development roles. He was the 2023 Astros’ assistant hitting coach.

Before his coaching career, Kanzler, who was drafted by the Minnesota Twins in the 20th round of the 2013 MLB First-Year Player Draft out of the University of Buffalo, played three minor-league seasons as an outfielder in the organization. In 255 games between Class-A Cedar Rapids and High-A Fort Myers, he hit .249 with a .720 OPS.

Why Did the Mariners Choose Jason Kanzler?

Seattle made a huge bet by picking rookie manager Jason Kanzler to lead the Mariners from 2027 onward. Mariners president of baseball operations Jerry Dipoto explained the organization’s decision-making process and how they found Kanzler to be the right fit.

“Our goal in this process was finding a manager with the ability to challenge all of us to improve,” Dipoto said, according to MLB.com. “Jason has the mindset, expertise, communication skills, and intensity to help create a championship standard here in Seattle.”

General manager Justin Hollander also welcomed Kanzler and his family and reaffirmed that he is the right person to lead Seattle.

“We are excited to welcome Jason and Ashley and their family to the Mariners,” Hollander said. “Throughout the process, Jason consistently demonstrated elite leadership skills, high-end content and an ability to connect and partner with players, staff and front office. We all believe Jason is the right person to lead our organization back to the Postseason.”

Kanzler is set to replace Dan Wilson, who failed to carry the momentum in 2026 after the team played in 2025 ALCS Game 7 against the Toronto Blue Jays. The Mariners couldn’t make the postseason this year after finishing with a 76-86 record in the regular season. The former MLB catcher has served as the Mariners’ manager from 2024 to 2026, posting a 187-171 record. Wilson leaves behind a Mariners unit featuring stars such as Julio Rodríguez and Cal Raleigh, along with pitchers Logan Gilbert and Bryan Woo.

Now, the challenge is for Kanzler to get the best out of these players and get the Mariners back into the playoffs.