Guardians' latest hiring shuffle seems aimed at recreating Mariners' playoff magic

After the 2023 season, the Cleveland Guardians dipped into the Seattle Mariners’ coaching depth when they hired Stephen Vogt to be their manager after he spent one season as the team’s bullpen and quality control coach. 

That’s been a clear win for the Guardians and Vogt, as the team’s made it to the postseason in both his years at the helm and he’s won back-to-back American League Manager of the Year awards. 

Now, some two years later, they’re dipping back into that pitching depth in the hopes of finding the same success. After hiring assistant GM Andy McKay to be their field coordinator earlier this week, the Guardians hired Seattle bullpen coach Tony Arnerich on Thursday to be their bench coach. 

Both coaches will have their work cut out for them in terms of replacing Kai Correa (field coordinator) and Craig Albernaz (bench coach), but they both have a strong background in coaching and managing teams that have major league success. 

Both of the Guardians’ new coaching hires have been clear wins 

McKay stands out as an interesting hiring considering his unique background. He joined Seattle in 2015 as the organization’s director of player development before joining the team’s major league staff in 2022 with a title of major league coach and senior director of baseball development before shifting to a front office role. He got to know Vogt during his one season in Seattle. 

“He’s a mentor. He's a phenomenal coach,” Vogt said about McKay earlier this week. “I got to know him, obviously, through the hiring process in Seattle and working for him. He helped me develop as a coach.”

On the other side, Arnerich is heading to Cleveland after holding Vogt’s former role of bullpen coach after Vogt left for Cleveland. 

Although winning is a complete team effort between players and managers, building a strong staff of managers can end up being the difference between winning or losing. The Guardians worked hard to surround Vogt with smart people over the past two seasons, and these hirings were a great response to this offseason’s coaching attrition. 

These hirings also hurt the Mariners, which is a bit of a latent benefit. 

The Mariners came within a game of making the World Series last season thanks to a strong brand of baseball based around strong pitching, an MVP-caliber hitter and smart baserunning. 

Sound familiar? 

The Guardians made the postseason in 2025 despite having one of the sport’s worst offenses, though the Guardians have a variety of young talent who benefit from an expanded role in 2026. 

That said, Cleveland’s brand of baseball under Vogt has won the division in two straight seasons, and should have a leg up on winning its third thanks to some malaise from the other teams in the American League Central. 

And if the Guardians do end up completing that trifecta of division titles, Arnerich and McKay will likely be a huge part of that.