Mariners Hire Tanner Swanson From Yankees as Bench Coach

Overview

• Reports from the New York Post, Pinstripe Alley and MLB Trade Rumors say the Seattle Mariners have hired Tanner Swanson to serve as bench coach for new manager Jason Kanzler.
• Swanson has worked in the Yankees organization since 2020 as director of catching and is widely credited with improving the club’s pitch framing and catcher preparation.
• In Seattle, Swanson is expected to work at the big-league level with primary catcher Cal Raleigh and to take on broader bench-coach duties beyond catching instruction.
• The move is the second notable Yankees staff loss in days after Triple-A manager Shelley Duncan departed for the Red Sox, leaving New York with immediate openings to fill.
• The Yankees’ recent pattern of trading from a catcher surplus — moves that sent players like Carlos Narváez, José Trevino and Kyle Higashioka elsewhere — raises questions about how New York will sustain the catching pipeline without Swanson.