After overseeing a farm system that has developed into one of the best in baseball, Andy McKay has been rewarded for that success along with his loyalty and longterm commitment to the organization.
On Wednesday, the Mariners announced that McKay has been promoted to assistant general manager.
“It would be impossible to overstate the impact Andy has made for the Mariners over the past seven years,” Mariners president of baseball operations Jerry Dipoto said in the news release. “His knack for identifying difference making people and cultivating learning environments has been a hallmark of our system since his arrival. His competitiveness, creativity, thirst to learn, talent to teach and a feel for baseball strategies will continue to challenge all of us to improve and grow.”
This will be McKay’s eighth year with the organization, having spent the past seven seasons serving as the Mariners director of player development, overseeing all aspects of the Mariners minor league system, including roster management and skills development.
McKay was promoted to the Mariners big league coaching staff before the 2021 season. However, when his expected replacement, Emanuel Sifuentes, left baseball for a different professional opportunity, McKay returned to his role as a senior director.
Per Baseball America organizational rankings, the Mariners went from the No. 30 farm system before the 2018 season to the No. 1 farm system before the 2022 season. Seattle has produced two of the last three American League Rookie of the Year Award winners (Kyle Lewis in 2020, Julio Rodríguez in 2022).
According to the news release, McKay will have an variety of responsibilities with a focus on aspects he handled in his previous role. Specifically, he will “oversee baseball development at all levels including player and staff development, mental skills and education programs across the organization. He will also oversee the director of player development and help advise in roster building, as well as installation of Seattle’s systems and programs on all levels.”
Before the Mariners, McKay served as peak performance coordinator for the Rockies minor league system from 2012-2016. Before moving to the professional ranks, McKay was the head baseball coach at Sacramento City College for 14 seasons (1999-2012). He compiled a record of 427-205-2 (.675) with eight league titles and finished in the top three in the state of California three times, including a state championship. He was the assistant coach at Sacramento City College from 1994-1998, after spending one season as a player/coach at the University of Tampa in 1993. Tampa won the Division II national title in his only season there.
A native of Sacramento, he graduated from Del Campo High (Sacramento), Sacramento City College and Sacramento State University. He earned his MBA in Organizational Behavior Studies from Sacramento State in 1996.
