What It Means:

Servais last played in the big leagues in 2001 with the Houston Astros as part of an 11-year career. He previously worked with new Mariners general manager Jerry DiPoto when both were with the Los Angeles Angels, though Servais has no managing experience.

The Mariners fell well short of expectations in 2015, finishing with a 76-86 record in fourth place in the American League West. They came on strong at the end of the year, though, recording the second best wRC+ in the league in the second half and the 14th best xFIP. They finished the year 15th in numberFire's power rankings, so the Mariners could be a decent bounce-back candidate for 2016.