The Seattle Mariners of the future will be getting instruction from a Mariners star of the past, Mr. Mariner himself.
Alvin Davis was one of five people hired for the minor league instructional staff, the team announced Thursday. Davis, who worked as a part-time roving minor league instructor last season, was named a full-time instructor in the same role.
In addition, retired infielder Chris Woodward, who played with the Mariners and Tacoma Rainiers, was hired as a minor league infield instructor. It’s the first coaching job for Woodward, who retired last season after 17 seasons in pro baseball.
Also hired was Brant Brown (outfield/baserunning), while Jose Moreno (field coordinator) and Javier Alvidrez (trainer) were added to Seattle’s Latin America staff.
“Chris and Brant bring a lot of knowledge, experience and passion to our player development staff,” Mariners director of player development Chris Gwynn said in a press release. “Jose … will be an asset with developing our young Latin players, while the addition of Alvin full time will benefit all of our minor league players.”
Davis, 52, played for the Mariners from 1984-1991 earning the nickname “Mr. Mariner.” He was the American League Rookie of the Year in 1984, and was the first inductee into the team’s hall of fame in 1997 after finishing his Mariners career in the top 10 of almost every team offensive category.
Woodward played in the Seattle organization in 2009-10, and was primarily a utility infielder during his big league career with the Blue Jays, Mets, Braves, Mariners and Red Sox. He spent last season with Triple-A Las Vegas, hitting .285 with 28 extra-base hits and 34 RBI in 88 games.
Brown worked the past six seasons for the Texas Rangers as a hitting coach, including last year with Triple-A Round Rock. He was originally drafted by the Cubs in 1992 out of Fresno State. He had big league stints with the Cubs, Pirates and Marlins.
Moreno has with the Seattle organization the past 13 seasons in a variety of coaching and managerial positions. His Class A short-season Everett team won the Northwest League title in 2010, and he was 29-38 last season at Rookie League Pulaski (Va.).
Alvidrez worked for the Yankees the last five seasons as an assistant strength coach and conditioning coordinator. Before that, he spent seven seasons in the A’s organization. He’s a graduate of New Mexico State University.
Ryan Divish: 253-597-8483 ryan.divish@thenewstribune.com @RyanDivish blog.thenewstribune.com/mariners
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