NEW YORK, NY - AUGUST 11: Director of Catching, Tanner Swanson #76 of the New York Yankees looks on before the game against the Seattle Mariners at Yankee Stadium on August 11, 2026 in New York, New York. (New York Yankees / Getty Images)
SEATTLE - The Seattle Mariners have hired Tanner Swanson as bench coach and CJ Gillman as hitting coach for new manager Jason Kanzler, the team announced on Monday.
Swanson has spent seven years on the major league coaching staff of the New York Yankees. Gillman joins a major league bench for the first time, returning to the Mariners' organization after a year as director of hitting for the Washington Nationals. Gillman previously spent four years as Seattle's minor league hitting coordinator.
"I am excited to have Tanner and CJ join our coaching staff," Kanzler said in a statement. "Both individuals bring an exceptional understanding of the game and skill sets that I am confident will help maximize the talent on our roster."
The backstory:
Swanson, 44, is a native of Roslyn and graduated from Central Washington University with a degree in physical education and school health while playing on the baseball team.
Swanson began coaching in the collegiate ranks, including five years as a volunteer assistant coach at the University of Washington from 2013-17. He served as minor league catching coordinator for the Minnesota Twins from 2018-19 before joining the Yankees in 2020 as their director of catching. Swanson oversaw catching throughout the Yankees' organization and also served as a quality control/catching coach on Aaron Boone's coaching staff.
The last three seasons, Swanson has been New York's field coordinator and director of catching.
Yankees catcher Jose Trevino won the American League's Platinum Glove in 2022 as the best defender in the league that season, earning his first Gold Glove in the process.
Gillman, 37, oversaw minor league hitting efforts and implemented Mariners staff development programs throughout the minor leagues for four years before leaving to take the job with the Nationals in 2026. President of baseball operations Jerry Dipoto and general manager Justin Hollander have both spoken about a disconnect in offensive approach the team had developed between the major leagues and their minor league system. Bringing Gillman back to Seattle is done with a desire to correct some of that chasm.
A University of Dayton graduate, Gillman spent two years as minor league hitting coordinator the Cincinnati Reds before initially joining the Mariners in 2022. He also spent time as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator the U.S. Air Force Academy after a brief professional playing career for the Windy City ThunderBolts of the Frontier League.
The Source: Information in this story came from the Seattle Mariners and FOX 13 Seattle reporting.
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