McLaren picks veteran Lee Elia as consultant

Getting back on the field in uniform at age 70 isn't something Lee Elia wants to make a big deal of.

After all, the new Mariners on-field consultant just returned from a once-in-a-lifetime trip to Albania. The "eye-opening" journey back to the home where his father was raised before moving to the United States is something Elia had spent years thinking of doing.

"It was great on some levels, because you got to see things that I'd wondered about for a good part of my life," said Elia, who visited with three second cousins still living in the former Stalinist nation in Eastern Europe. "But on the other hand, it was one of those things where you go, 'Thank God I got to grow up where I did.' "

Elia's new role with the Mariners, which will encompass part of spring training and several visits to Seattle during the season, is to help manager John McLaren with whatever he needs. It will mainly involve Elia reporting back to McLaren on on-field issues — such as the hitting, pitching, or fielding work being done by players — that the manager might be too busy to constantly monitor.

"With all the responsibility Mac has, he might say, 'Lee, would you look into this?' " Elia said. "I'm kind of flattered by the opportunity to get back out on the field."

But Elia made it clear he appreciates the experience of the current Mariners coaching staff and isn't about to step on anyone's toes.

"My relationship with John [McLaren], it's obvious how it's been over the years," said Elia, on staff with McLaren for several years as a Seattle hitting coach from 1993-97 and again in a role similar to this one in 2001-02. "But I'm a baseball guy. I'm not there to pry and snoop around."

This will mark the 50th season in professional baseball for Elia, who was signed by the Philadelphia Phillies in 1959. The onetime Phillies and Chicago Cubs manager — a scout with the Tampa Bay Devil Rays last season — could give the Mariners three former field bosses on staff.

Besides Elia and onetime Cubs manager Jim Riggleman, now the Seattle bench coach, the Mariners are waiting for former Phillies manager Larry Bowa to confirm he's aboard as third-base coach. Bowa said in a telephone interview he's still got several "loose ends" to tie up on a personal matter.

Bowa was the third-base coach with the Yankees last season. There have been rumors he might try to stay in New York, or follow former Yankees manager Joe Torre to Los Angeles and be a base coach with the Dodgers.

But in the interview, Bowa ruled out returning to the Yankees under new manager Joe Girardi.

Geoff Baker: 206-464-8286 or gbaker@seattletimes.com