The Seattle Mariners have named Jerry Dipoto general manager, the team announced on Monday. 

Dipoto will replace Jack Zduriencik, who was dismissed from the team on August 28. 

The 47-year-old Dipoto resigned from the GM position with the Los Angeles Angels on July 1, following a long-term disagreement that included years of tension with manager Mike Scioscia over the usage of analytics.

In August, Dipoto was hired by the Red Sox to serve in an advisory role. The team, however, noted that if Dipoto was given the opportunity to be a GM, he would pursue that instead of continuing to work with Boston. 

Many names were thrown around as possible options for the Mariners' opening when the GM search began a month ago to this day. Yankees assistant GM Billy Eppler and Dipoto were the rumored two finalists for the job last Friday.

The Mariners ownership ultimately wanted a GM with experience, and Dipoto fits that bill. 

"Jerry impressed us at each step of the process,” said president Kevin Mather in a statement. “He has a very unique skill set, having been a successful player in the Majors, then moving into front offices with steadily increasing responsibilities. Jerry has scouted, spent time in player development and has a track record as a very successful General Manager. During our conversations over the past few weeks, it became clear to me that he has a very solid understanding of our team and organization, both where we are and where we want to be. And he has a strategy to get us there. Few candidates bring the combination of playing the game, scouting, a solid understanding of statistical metrics and a plan for player development. I am looking forward to having Jerry lead our baseball operations for a long time.”

Dipoto played in the Major Leagues for parts of eight seasons spanning from 1993 to 2000, pitching to a career 27-24 record with a 4.05 ERA in 495 1/3 innings with the Indians, Mets, and Rockies. Dipoto has worked in the front office since becoming a scout with the Red Sox in 2003. He became the Angels' GM in 2011. 

​--Devan Fink

The Boston Red Sox have named assistant general manager Mike Hazen their general manager, Jon Heyman of CBS Sports first reported Thursday afternoon. 

Hazen steps in for Ben Cherington, who left the organization following the hiring of Dave Dombrowski to become the team's president of baseball operations. 

The 39-year-old Hazen has worked for the Red Sox since 2006, when he was named director of player development. He was promoted to vice president and assistant general manager in 2012. Earlier this year, he became a senior vice president. 

Hazen is a former professional baseball player, having been drafted by the San Diego Padres in the 31st round in the 1998 MLB Draft out of Princeton. After retiring in 1999, he joined the Indians to become a Major League Advance Scout in 2001 and has been working in a front office ever since. 

By choosing Hazen to become their next general manager, the Red Sox will avoid an exodus in their front office, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports opines. When a new GM comes into a team, he usually likes to have his own staff working for him, which in the case of the Red Sox, would have meant that a lot of jobs could be turned over quickly. However, Hazen, being an in house candidate, probably won't make many, if any, personnel decisions in the front office. 

At the time of this writing, the Red Sox have gone 72-79, despite being major players in the free agent market, signing two of the biggest position player free agents, Pablo Sandoval and Hanley Ramirez, to long term deals. Hazen and Dombrowski will have their work cut out for them to make Boston competitive again.

--Devan Fink

The Philadelphia Phillies named interim manager Pete Mackanin manager for the 2016 season, they announced in a press release on Tuesday. The extension includes a team option for 2017. 

Mackanin, 64, became the Phillies' manager after Ryne Sandberg abruptly resigned following a 26-48 (.351) start. 

Players, for the most part, seem to like Mackanin's intensity and have gone 31-46 (.403) in his presence. Mackanain seemed to have resonated with the players and while he was not given a lot of talent to work with to say the least, one could argue that he made the most of it. 

"The Phillies are pleased that Pete has accepted the position of manager for the 2016 season," said Andy MacPhail, the team's incoming president, in a statement. "We believe that Pete is the best fit for the role. Since assuming the interim manager position in June, Pete has developed an excellent rapport with our players and has also connected well with the media and our fans. Equally as important is his eagerness to take on the challenge of rebuilding the team and further developing our players. We look forward to his contributions."

Mackanain has an 84-99 career record as a manager. He has never been the permanent manager, serving as the interim skipper for three teams, the 2005 Pirates, the 2007 Reds, and now the 2015 Phillies. His chance to prove himself as a full-time manager will come next season. 

--Devan Fink

The Milwaukee Brewers will hire Houston Astros assistant GM David Stearns to become their new general manager, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports first reported on Sunday. 

Stearns will be replacing Doug Melvin, who spent almost thirteen years in the GM position in Milwaukee. The club announced that he transitioned to an advisory role on August 11, ending his tenure and opening up the spot that Stearns will now fill. 

The 30-year-old Stearns brings to the table what the Brewers reportedly wanted in their new GM. 

First off, he is from an Ivy League alma mater, graduating from Harvard in 2007. Secondly, he is big in analytics, having worked for the Astros for three years. And finally, Stearns is young and should be able to hold the position for awhile if he does well. 

Stearns has worked within baseball virtually since he graduated. He spent 2008 to 2011 working within the MLB's office of the commissioner, assisting with the salary arbitration process and uniform player contracts, as well as being a member for the MLB's negotiating team for the Collective Bargaining Agreement. 

He served as the Indians' Director of Baseball Operations from 2011 to 2012. Since, he's been with Houston and "assists General Manager Jeff Luhnow in all baseball operations capacities including player evaluations, player transactions, and contract negotiations and helps oversee the Astros' scouting, player development, and analytics departments," according to the team website. 

--Devan Fink

The Pirates lost an important cog of the left side of their infield for the remainder of the season Thursday. 

According to Dejan Kovacevic of DKPittsburghSports.com, Pittsburgh third baseman and shortstop Jung Ho Kang is out for the rest of the 2015 season due to a torn MCL and meniscus, as well as a broken tibia in his leg. 

Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reported that Kang will have knee surgery tonight. 

Kang suffered his leg injury on a collision by second base with Cubs outfielder Chris Coghlan, who was sliding to break up a possible double play. 

Said Kang's agent, Alan Nero of Octagon Sports, in a statement: "It is unfortunate that what would be considered heads up baseball would cause such a serious injury. That said, Coghlan was playing the game the way it should be played. I'm confident he meant me no harm. I appreciate everyone's support."

The injury has plenty of implications, including the future of Kang as he recovers from this extremely serious injury as well as the Pirates chances of going deep into the playoffs. 

Pittsburgh is currently 87-59 and is 4 1/2 games behind the NL-Central-leading-Cardinals. The team is in command of the first Wild Card spot in the league, holding a two game over the Cubs for the lead, as well as a ten game lead over the Giants for a playoff spot overall. 

Kang, who was signed to a four-year, $11 million deal this offseason (plus a $5 million posting fee), has been in every way a complete bargain for the team. The rookie is hitting .287/.355/.461 (123 OPS+) with 15 home runs and 58 RBIs over 467 plate appearances, also registering as an above average defender and base runner. Overall, Kang has been worth 4.0 fWAR this season. 

In his place, the Pirates will have to rely on the play of Josh Harrison and Jordy Mercer, both of whom have had subpar seasons offensively, posting a 87 and 63 OPS+, respectively. In all likelihood, Harrison will play third and Mercer will stick at short. 

--Devan Fink