Hargrove chose right time

I enjoyed John Blanchette’s column (July 2) on (Mike Hargrove’s) resignation. There will be a lot of speculation about his surprise resignation and rightfully so. I admired his approach to the game and was a fan of his even when he was with the (Cleveland) Indians. He is a baseball guy and not a person that will be popular with the fans or perhaps the media. He is not a charismatic type and is not outrageous (a la Piniella) so probably not a fan pleaser.

My reaction is that this is a perfect time for him to go.

“The team is doing well. They are a bunch of mature guys that will not allow this to be a distraction.

“They have a good replacement that probably was chosen to be his successor anyway.

“Grover did what he said he would do at the beginning of the season – turn the team around. He was on the “hot seat” on opening day and by July 1 the management was trying to talk him out of leaving.

“After his visit home for his daughter’s graduation there obviously was an intense pull to be a dad, husband and grandfather, a role that had been second place for 37 years.

“It appears that this was a decision that was about relationships and not about money. Time will tell. His wife probably had a big part of this decision. Take that however you want, but I applaud it.

In October we will be able to say whether Grover’s untimely resignation was an important event in Mariners history. Until then, I hope Mike and his wife buy that red pickup and go watch their son play a little baseball.

Jesse Clark

Spokane