 The Mariners were eventually sold to Indiana businessman Jeff Smulyan in 1989, and Armstrong was let go.Armstrong worked for several Seattle companies as a consultant from 1989 to 1992, and served as interim athletic director for the University of Washington Huskies, during 1991.In 1991, after Smulyan had put the team up for sale and rumors persisted that they would relocate to the Tampa Bay area, Armstrong was recruited by then-U.S.