Hargrove is wrong choice for M's

As the fans of Seattle sit back and watch the Boston Red Sox dismantle the National League powerhouse that was the St. Louis Cardinals, one cannot help but sit back and think of what might have been.

In 2001, the Seattle Mariners sent the city into a frenzy of excitement by winning an American League record 116 games during the regular season. It was our year; there was nobody who could beat us.

Then the Mariners played the New York Yankees in the AL Championship Series, and all dreams were dashed within six short games.

Since that wondrous summer of 2001, the Mariners have slowly slipped further and further down to the deep, dark recesses of the AL. Now, the Mariners are in a rebuilding stage -- a team with no identity and few superstars to close the gap of mediocrity.

Mariner management has publicly declared their dedication to winning and changing the fortunes of the team soon, hoping to forego a rebuilding stage. Never before has an owner of any professional sports franchise in Seattle come out and declared his or her commitment to excellence with as much force as M's Chairman and CEO Howard Lincoln displayed two weeks ago when the Mariners gave Bob Melvin the axe after losing 99 games this season.

Although the words seemed to speak volumes that the organization was turning a corner, the actions of the Mariner's front office spoke much louder.

The search for a new manager was on, and the Seattle hopefuls were optimistic -- hopeful the Mariners would not make the same mistake they did two years ago when they hired a bench coach from Arizona instead of a proven commodity like Dusty Baker.

Wrong, rewind the tape and roll playback.

The Mariners hired Mike Hargrove, a manager who has never won without a stacked team of superstars. In 1997, Hargrove led a Cleveland Indians team to the AL pennant, but the Indians were loaded with superstars like Manny Ramirez, Jim Thome and David Justice. With that many star players, success was imminent for the Indians, no matter who was managing.

Since leaving Cleveland and taking over the Baltimore Orioles in 2000, Hargrove has compiled a record of 275-372 -- envied maybe by Melvin, but not by anyone else.

Boasting a .420 winning percentage over four years with veteran stars like Cal Ripken, Jr. and Albert Belle is nothing to write home about. Still, Lincoln and Mariners' General Manager Bill Bavasi believe Hargrove is the man to right the Mariners' ship.

Hargrove is not the worst man for the job, but he is certainly not the best either. Earlier in the season the Mets fired Art Howe leaving the former Oakland A's manager without a home -- a man who developed players like Jason Giambi, Eric Chavez and Tim Hudson.

Howe did what Hargrove has never done -- won without superstars and did it on a team with one of the lowest payrolls in the majors.

Also reportedly on the market after the World Series is St. Louis skipper Tony LaRussa. What better manager could there be than Tony LaRussa? A proven winner with two different teams, LaRussa has a knack for getting the most out of his players.

Mariner management should have waited to see what LaRussa's plans were and made him an offer in an attempt to ensure him at Safeco Field. If that did not work, the management should have set its sights on Howe, a manager who develops superstars from no names, which is what the Mariners are left with, unless you look out to right field.