MLB: Mike Hargrove resigns

[DeToxRox]

SEATTLE -- Mike Hargrove resigned as manager of the Seattle Mariners on Sunday, saying his "passion has begun to fade" for baseball even though his team is the hottest club in the majors.
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Hargrove was to manage Sunday's game against Toronto and will be succeeded by John McLaren, his bench coach. McLaren's first game as manager will be Monday against Kansas City.

The Mariners have won seven consecutive games, and Hargrove's startling resignation came hours before the team tried to extend its longest winning streak in more than four years.

"Over the past several weeks, I have come to the realization that to be fair to myself and the team, I cannot continue to do this job if my passion has begun to fade," the 57-year-old Hargrove said in a statement.

Hargrove was in the middle of his 16th season. He led Cleveland to two World Series, in 1995 and '97. He had six consecutive losing seasons in Baltimore and Seattle before the Mariners' surprising surge this year. Seattle was four games behind the Los Angeles Angels in the AL West entering Sunday.

"I am very proud of the work we've done to turn this club around in three years, and I have high expectations for the team this season," Hargrove said.

[Lathum]

wow, pretty crazy

[terpkristin]

I just got home and saw this on my ESPN news feed. Very unexpected (at least from me, with my east coast bias).

/tk

[Young Drachma]

John McLaren probably never would've got his chance otherwise. So good for him.

[dawgfan]

Very odd. Given the success of the team this year, it's exceedingly difficult to imagine a scenario where he's been kicked to the curb behind the scenes. I'd have to guess that something else is going on here, some kind of personal issue that is affecting him and/or his family.

As much as I've trashed his managerial abilities, he seems like a genuinely good guy and someone I'd really enjoy having a beer or ten with.

And wow, what a spot for John McLaren to finally get his shot at managing - "Here you go, team's on a 7 game winning streak, 11 games over .500, 4 games out of first and only 1 game out of the Wild Card - keep it going." No pressure eh?

[RPI-Fan]

Rumor is he didn't get along with Ichiro...

[SnowMan]

I pretty much agree with Dawg, I didn't like his managerial style, but he does seem like a good guy. I also hope the Ms can keep playing like they have even with a distraction like this.

[sterlingice]

I hope they are horribly distracted and drop 3 in KC ;)

Seriously, tho, that's a bit weird. Never heard a bad thing about him- kindof odd circumstances.

SI

[scooter]

There were some rumblings here about a month ago when he skipped a game to go to his daughter's graduation. I wonder if that had anything to do with it? A lot of people thought his first obligation was to the team. I could see him re-evaluating things a bit after an episode like that.

[Izulde]

There were some rumblings here about a month ago when he skipped a game to go to his daughter's graduation. I wonder if that had anything to do with it? A lot of people thought his first obligation was to the team. I could see him re-evaluating things a bit after an episode like that.

WTF? People thought his first obligation was to the team? That's stupid. It's his daughter's graduation... he should damn well be able to go to that over 1 of 162 games a year.

[dawgfan]

He actually took 3 games off for his daughter's graduation.

Listening to his reasoning today and thinking more about it, I guess it's starting to make more sense - he's been in the game for his whole adult life, he's financially secure but hasn't yet been able to fully enjoy his financial status, he's been doing this for more than 30 years.

There's probably more to it than that - friction with certain players, maybe some pressure from the front office, criticism from fans may well have helped push him in this direction. But I remember thinking when he took the 3 games off to go to his daughter's graduation that it seemed a bit unusual for a manager to be gone that long for that sort of thing. And it makes sense that he's been thinking a lot about whether the baseball grind is worth it anymore.

Whatever the case may be, he gets to go out on a positive note.

[Ksyrup]

Buster Olney said this morning that part of Ichiro's rumblings about going elsewhere are tied directly to Hargrove's lack of enthusiasm and general management style.

[path12]

Buster Olney said this morning that part of Ichiro's rumblings about going elsewhere are tied directly to Hargrove's lack of enthusiasm and general management style.

Speaking for myself, I'd much rather have Ichiro stay than Hargrove. But I guess that's a pretty easy call.

[Young Drachma]

Sorta unrelated, but imagine calling in sick as an athlete on a sports team? "Hey Skip, I'm umm..not gonna make it today. Yeah, feeling like crap."

"No worries, Millionaire. We'll see ya in the dugout tomorrow. Get better."

I mean, how awkward are these conversations anyway? Do you need a doctor's note?

Ok, back on topic now.

[chesapeake]

Art Thiel at the Seattle PI implies that Ichiro's problems with Hargrove -- and friendship with McLaren -- may have had something to do with the decision. But he can't go all the way. I suspect he couldn't get anyone to comment for the record, certainly not Ichiro.