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<< Previous   of   Next >>   ADVERTISEMENT   CONTACT THE HERALD Report scores and results to 425-339-3470 or 1-866-6-SCORES (Call after 4:30 p.m.) E-mail information including items for Tuesday's Communities Sports Roundup and Thursday's Outdoor Calendar, to sports@heraldnet.com Kevin Brown, Sports Editor kbrown@heraldnet.com   Published: Monday, October 13, 2008 M's GM list has an NL West connection Assistant GMs Kim Ng (Dodgers) and Jerry DiPoto and Peter Woodfork (Diamondbacks) are all highly regarded by Seattle in its search. By Kirby Arnold Herald Writer SEATTLE -- As the Seattle Mariners continue interviews this week to fill their vacant general manager job, a good chunk of the talent pool is coming from the National League West. Three of the most highly regarded individuals are assistant GMs with NL West teams -- Kim Ng of the Los Angeles Dodgers, and Jerry DiPoto and Peter Woodfork of the Arizona Diamondbacks. Others who have interviewed, according to baseball experts familiar with the Mariners' search, include Mets player development director Tony Bernazard and Blue Jays assistant GM Tony LaCava. Two in-house candidates, interim GM Lee Pelekoudas and international operations director Bob Engle, also are candidates. Two others have dropped out -- A's assistant GM David Forst and White Sox assistant GM Rick Hahn. Forst has decided to remain with the A's while the White Sox denied the Mariners' request to interview Hahn. The Mariners would not comment on the process, although it's known that CEO Howard Lincoln and president Chuck Armstrong conducted interviews throughout the past week and will do more this week. They will narrow the field again and conduct followup interviews before making a final decision. The Mariners remain close to their original goal of having the new GM in place by the end of this month. An announcement isn't likely until after the World Series, which could last as late as Oct. 30. Major League Baseball discourages teams from making major announcements while the Series is being played. Of the two from the Diamondbacks, DiPoto's deeper knowledge of scouting and player development, along with his overall greater sense of talent evaluation, gives him an edge over Woodfork. "These are two very bright guys. They're well-spoken and well-regarded in their areas of responsibility," said Bryan Price, who has worked with both DiPoto and Woodfork as pitching coach for the Diamondbacks. Price was the Mariners' pitching coach from 2001-2006. "They're both very organized and I imagine if either one gets it, the other will be in consideration for other jobs in the near future." DiPoto, 40, pitched eight years in the major leagues as a reliever and has led the scouting and player development departments for the Colorado Rockies and the Diamondbacks. "Jerry has impressed me with his ability to evaluate talent," Price said. "More and more, you're finding that there are a lot of baseball people whose strength may not be in player evaluation. His would be. He can look at a player and break a player down and tell you what he likes and what he doesn't like about a player. He has been very accurate with a lot of his assessments." Woodfork, 32, was assistant player development director for the Red Sox from 2003-2005 and has spent most of his career handling the nuances of contract and labor issues. "Peter is a little bit younger and he's a very sharp guy," Price said. "He played four years at Harvard, worked in the commissioner's office and in the front office with the Red Sox. His strength certainly lies in contract issues, the waiver process and all the little issues that you need to know in these jobs." READER COMMENTS Be the first to comment. You must be a registered user and verify your e-mail address to post comments to blogs or articles on HeraldNet. To register, click here. To read other terms and conditions, click here. Log out

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