A year ago and change, resident soothsayer Aaron Shinsano wrote in EWC that L.A. Dodgers Assistant GM Kim Ng’s name was coming up automatically when GM vacancies arose, and that Ng would end up a GM of an MLB franchise sooner than later.
Fast forward one year, and accounts all over the blogosphere are reporting that Ng’s name is on Seattle’s short list of choices. The team is badly in need of a change of direction after becoming the first franchise in history with a 100- million-plus payroll to lose 100 games, and owner Chuck Armstrong is listening. According to an interview with Armstrong at Fanhouse:
“It’s time for some fresh thinking,” Armstrong said at the end of his 23rd season with the team - what he called his worst and most “miserable” one.
“We’re color blind, gender blind,” he went on to say. “We just want the best person that we think would be the best person for the Mariners as we move forward,” Armstrong said.
With a bloated payroll, a clubhouse coming apart at the seams with infighting, head scratching free agent signings , and deals gone awry, the Mariners certainly could benefit from some fresh ideas. By all accounts Ng is highly regarded in baseball circles and has the experience necessary to excel at the job. We at EWC would love to see Ng get a shot at GM.
9 responses so far ↓
1 simon // Sep 30, 2008 at 8:31 pm
Would she also become the first Asian GM in MLB? That’ll be breaking two glass ceilings simultaneously!
2 Joel // Sep 30, 2008 at 8:48 pm
I would argue the latter is more impressive (being the first Asian GM). Call me a chauvinist but I see women in baseball as being more an anomaly than “the future”…as in the case in politics. It’s not as if a woman will be playing pro baseball anytime soon.
But an Asian GM is long overdue.
3 Korea Beat // Oct 1, 2008 at 9:04 am
I wonder if management would give her the free hands she would need to turn the Mariners around. I also think she could fail to do so through no fault of her own, or through not being given enough time, and paradoxically leave the glass ceiling stronger then before.
4 Shinsano // Oct 1, 2008 at 12:41 pm
First, I agree with Joel. The need for an Asian GM is greater than a woman GM. But I also tend to agree with Korea Beat. If she’s hired the stakes will be high…and it’s not exactly an easy job to succeed in anyway. Good luck to her though…I think it’s going to happen.
5 Jackson // Oct 1, 2008 at 5:46 pm
Aaron, why do you say that? I mean the claim that there’s a greater need for an Asian GM than a female one.
6 Shinsano // Oct 1, 2008 at 8:24 pm
Because there have been a number of Asians involved in MLB. There haven’t been many women. The lack of Asians in MLB management is glaring to me. The lack of females not so much.
7 Nope, Still Not Friday Reading | umpbump.com // Oct 2, 2008 at 11:19 pm
[...] Kim Ng’s time finally come? Women breaking the glass ceiling often have to wait for the men to screw it up before [...]
8 yoshi // Oct 10, 2008 at 6:01 am
whats your take on this? mariners are interviewing kim ng this week. the dodgers are still playing ball. the mariners wanted to “expedite” the process so they insisted on interviewing her asap. they sure didn’t expedite richie sexson’s release.
9 Shinsano // Oct 10, 2008 at 8:15 am
Ha. Sounds a little ify, but most teams are heading into their offseason planning/budget meetings. They may want to get this settled before then.
I saw her in the booth when the Dodgers clinched against the Cubs. She ran across the room and gave Colletti a high five. It was kind of a cool moment.
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