BALTIMORE -- During a 14-year MLB playing career from 1994-2007, John Mabry suited up for eight teams. He then had coaching stints for three organizations -- the Cardinals (2012-18), Royals ('20-22) and Marlins ('23-24).
Along the way, the 54-year-old Mabry has spent time with some of baseball’s best minds.
“I guess that’s your journey in the big leagues, right?” Mabry said. “I was blessed to play for guys like Tony La Russa, Lou Piniella, Dusty Baker and Bruce Bochy, Art Howe, Larry Bowa -- a lot of the names in the history of the game that are going to be pretty synonymous with baseball.
“Every year, you learn something in this game. If you stick around long enough, you’ll see something, you’ll learn something, that you have never seen before or hadn’t known before. All those guys, the way they handle the clubhouse, the way they prep, the way they handled individual relationships -- if you’re paying attention, you can learn a lot from people like that that have been in the game a long time.”
Now, Mabry is ready to impart some of his knowledge in a homecoming of sorts.
The Orioles hired Mabry on Friday to serve as a senior advisor to the Major League coaching staff, adding a veteran voice to a group that has been led by interim manager Tony Mansolino for a little more than two weeks. Mabry -- who was born in Wilmington, Del., but later attended Bohemia Manor High School in Chesapeake City, Md. -- arrived at Camden Yards to begin his new job Sunday.
Mabry will be stationed in Baltimore’s dugout moving forward, as he was for the O’s 3-2 win in the series finale against the White Sox, his first game with the club.
Even though Mabry never previously played or coached for the Orioles -- and he now lives in the St. Louis area -- this wasn’t his first time supporting the team. He grew up an O’s fan, living in Cecil County (as well as Baltimore) earlier in his life.
Mabry still has family members who live in Maryland and are supporters of his new employer.
“Happy for the opportunity,” Mabry said. “My favorite player was Eddie Murray, Cal Ripken, the whole nine yards. I’ve been watching the Orioles since Wild Bill Hagy-type stuff, so it’s a cool opportunity.”
Given Mabry’s long history in the game, there are some familiar faces to him in the clubhouse. First baseman/outfielder Ryan O’Hearn (Kansas City from 2020-22), infielder Emmanuel Rivera (Miami in ‘24), outfielder Dylan Carlson (St. Louis’ farm system from '16-18) and right-hander Matt Bowman (St. Louis from '16-18) all have ties.
First-base coach Anthony Sanders also played with Mabry for the Mariners in 2000.
“The longer you stick around, the more that happens, and it’s a small community in baseball,” Mabry said. “So it’s really cool to have that familiarity with those guys and have something to build with and trust and relationships with, it helps.”
Mabry was also a teammate of former All-Star outfielder Matt Holliday on the Rockies in 2007, then served as the Cardinals’ hitting coach while Holliday was on the team from '12-16. Now, Mabry will get a chance to work with Jackson Holliday, Matt’s 21-year-old son who has solidified his role as the Orioles’ everyday second baseman.
“He played with my kid in the family room [at Busch Stadium] for years,” Mabry said of the younger Holliday.
When Mabry first received a call from the O’s in late May, he had already “soft-launched” his retirement, as he put it. He was focusing on being a father to his four children and spending time with family, and he wasn’t expecting to jump onto an MLB staff midseason.
However, Baltimore had at least one opening following the dismissals of manager Brandon Hyde and field coordinator/catching instructor Tim Cossins on May 17. The Orioles’ staff could benefit from more experience, with Mansolino serving as a first-time manager and bench coach Robinson Chirinos and interim third-base/infield coach Buck Britton both in their first seasons.
Mabry has done some preliminary research, but he’s eager to learn the players on Baltimore’s roster better and to help in any way he can.
“I’m going to get to know them. You always watch stuff, but you want to see it firsthand and see what’s going on,” Mabry said. “Just going to be a helping hand, just be an available resource for coaches and players. Just to get to know everything that’s going on and be available.”
On Sunday morning, Mansolino and Mabry rode in together to the ballpark, as the two are now living in the same building in Baltimore and looking forward to working in unison to try to help turn the Orioles (22-36) around.
"Got to chat with him this morning, got to hang out with him on the field this morning," Mansolino said. "I gravitate toward people like my dad. People like my dad -- they’ve been in the game for a long time, there’s a lot of wisdom. It’s really important to have that in every environment, and we’re just really excited for John and him being here.”