Mariners vet on Scott Servais being let go: ‘It was a shock’

As the longest-tenured player on the Seattle Mariners and the team’s de facto captain in recent years, veteran shortstop J.P. Crawford went through a lot together with former manager Scott Servais.

Drayer: Looking at Scott Servais’ legacy, why Mariners let him go

The depths of a rebuild in 2019. All the challenges of the abbreviated 2020 season. A near-miss in 2021. The drought-ending breakthrough of 2022. Another near-miss in 2023. And now, a crushing two-month collapse that cost Servais his job and has the Mariners’ season on the brink.

So when Crawford saw the news Thursday that Servais had been relieved of his duties, he was stunned.

“Yeah, it was a shock,” Crawford said before Friday’s series opener against the San Francisco Giants. “I think everyone found out on social media, because the first thing you do when you wake up, you check your phone and all that sort of stuff. And it was tough. He’s been my manager ever since my first day here and he challenged me to be the best person I could be. I was sad to see him let go.”

Servais is the second-winningest manager in franchise history, posting a 680-642 record over his nine seasons at the helm. He guided the Mariners to four seasons of 88-plus wins, including the milestone 2022 campaign that ended a 21-year playoff drought.

But after breaking through in 2022, Seattle fell one game short of the postseason in 2023 and is in serious jeopardy of coming short again this year.

The Mariners held a 10-game lead atop the American League West on June 18, but have since dropped all the way back to .500 with a dismal 20-33 stretch – capped by a disastrous 1-8 road trip that ultimately marked the end of Servais’ tenure.

“Day by day, you get to create bonds with people, especially being here for a certain number of years,” said Crawford, who has been with Seattle since the start of 2019. “You get close and you just figure out what type of guy he is, and he really had our backs.”

Crawford said he particularly appreciated how Servais empowered his players to be themselves and take leadership of the team.

“He taught me how to be myself on the baseball field,” Crawford said. “And I think that’s what really changed my career. And you know, it sucks to see him let go like that, but we’ve gotta continue to keep doing our jobs. We’re not out of it yet, so we’ve got a job to focus on at the end of the day.”

Seattle entered Friday at 64-64, sitting 5.5 games behind the first-place Houston Astros in the AL West and 7.5 games out of the AL’s final wild-card spot.

“You don’t like to anyone lose their job, so I feel bad, and I’ve known Scott for a while,” said veteran outfielder Mitch Haniger, who played under Servais for six of the past eight seasons. “But our focus here is winning and getting to the playoffs and winning the World Series. So for me and the rest of the guys showing up today, it’s prepare to come to work today, get better and improve and let’s win tonight.”

Former longtime Mariners catcher Dan Wilson was hired to replace Servais. Wilson played 12 seasons for Seattle between 1994 and 2005 and has remained active in the organization through a variety of adviser and coaching roles over the past decade.

“I’m excited for Dan being here,” Haniger said. “I’ve never had a bad interaction with that guy. He’s been great to have around through the years and to talk to. And I’m excited for him. And like I said, we’re focused on winning and getting back on track.”

Led by an exceptional starting rotation, the Mariners’ pitching staff has the best ERA in the majors. But the rotation’s brilliance has been undone by the team’s season-long struggles at the plate. Seattle ranks near the bottom of the majors in nearly every key offensive category, including 27th in runs per game and dead-last in batting average.

“We have a lot of good players in this clubhouse, despite some of the categories,” Haniger said. “Obviously, offensively it’s been a struggle. But guys show up every day, work hard and get better. I mean, generally on some of the crappy teams I’ve been on in the past, you see guys throw in the towel. You see guys show up late and not put in work, play cards, not try to get better.

“That’s not the case here, so I think we can flip the switch and get right back on track.”

More on the Seattle Mariners

• Dan Wilson steps in at manager as Seattle Mariners try to save season
• Edgar Martinez returns as Seattle Mariners hitting coach
• Mariners Roster Moves: Key reliever headed to injured list
• What Mariners’ decision to let Servais go says about this season
• Salk: Making sense of the Seattle Mariners’ Scott Servais era ending

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