SEATTLE -- If Mariners manager John McLaren wants an experienced pitching coach with a handful of World Series rings, there's one available.

And he lives close to Safeco Field.

"I'm not actively looking for a job, but I would welcome an opportunity to be their pitching coach," Mel Stottlemyre said. "It would be an easy transition for me to get back into the game."

The 66-year-old resides in Sammamish, Wash., located about 30 miles east of Seattle, and currently is a Minor League instructor for the Diamondbacks. The former All-Star pitcher for the Yankees was their pitching coach from 1996 through 2005, running a pitching staff that reeled off four consecutive World Series appearances.

Stottlemyre said he recently talked to McLaren about the Mariners' pitching coach vacancy, which became vacant on Oct. 4, when most of the coaches from this season's team were dismissed. But as of Friday, an official interview had not been scheduled. Stottlemyre is one of several candidates for the position.

"It would be a nice situation," Stottlemyre said. "I really don't know how it's going to work out, but it definitely is something I'm interested in. I talked to Mac very briefly and he said he would get back to me one way or the other."

Stottlemyre, a three-time 20-game winner for the Yankees during the 1960s and 70s, worked as a roving pitching instructor for the Mariners during their first season in 1977, spent 10 seasons as the Mets pitching coach, two with the Astros and joined the Yankees in the same capacity in 1996.

Since resigning from the Yankees after the 2005 season, Stottlemyre said he has "kept my foot in the door" by attending Spring Training with the Yankees and helping the D-Backs' Minor League pitchers.

He also has followed the Mariners, "pretty closely."

"I watch a lot of their games on television and have attended a few games [at Safeco Field]. My niece has a suite and I try to stay hidden."

Asked about his familiarity with the Mariners current pitching staff, he said, "I probably know a lot more about them than I do other clubs."

His philosophy in a nutshell is, "throw strike one, work fast and change speeds," he said.

Bummed: The "tentative" regular-season schedule for next season has club officials concerned, to say the least, and it has less to do with the franchise-record 55,142 miles that will be flown than other factors.

"In my 10 years [as director of team travel], this is the worst schedule I've ever seen," Ron Spellecy said. "We gave them [MLB] three revisions, none of which were much better than the previous one. We're still trying, but the chances of getting it changed are slim and none."

The Mariners are scheduled to open the season at home on March 31 against the Rangers, play three games, and then open a six-game road trip in Baltimore on April 4. That sent up a red flag.

It will be Seattle's only visit to Baltimore during the '08 season, bringing back memories of a four-game series against the Indians in Cleveland this past April. All four games were snowed out, and because it was the Mariners' only trip to Cleveland, it caused a rescheduling nightmare.

"We were assured that would never happen again," Spellecy said. "Baltimore?"

According to weather records, the average April temperature in Baltimore is 53.4 (compared to 47.6 in Cleveland), there is 3.1 inches of precipitation (same as Cleveland) and there are three days of sub-freezing temperatures (Cleveland has nine).

Other concerns:

• There are no three-city road trips to the East Coast as requested.

• There are only four games against AL West opponents in May; three in June; and six in August.

• After a seven-game road trip to Texas and Chicago in early May, the team returns to Seattle for a three-game series against the Rangers and then embarks on another six-game trek to Detroit and New York.

• There are three trips to New York prior to the All-Star Game: Yankees on May 2-3-4 and May 23-24-25, and the Mets on June 23-24-25.

According to Spellecy, seven of Seattle's 12 road trips include series against teams in the Eastern time zone (compared to three of 11 for the Athletics and four of 12 for the Angels).

"Where's the competitive balance?" he asked.

Still talkin': The process of selecting an almost completely new coaching staff continues for McLaren. He needs to fill vacancies for the bench coach, pitching coach, bullpen coach and the first- and third-base spots. Former Mariners closer Norm Charlton is rumored to be a lock, probably as the bullpen coach. "We don't have a timeframe," McLaren told the Everett Herald. "We're putting a good staff together and it'll take some time." There have been reports that either Jay Buhner and/or Edgar Martinez would become part of McLaren's coaching staff, but both said they were not interested.