 On November 19, 2008, the Mariners named Oakland Athletics bench coach Don Wakamatsu as their new manager.With the hiring, Wakamatsu becomes the first Asian-American manager in Major League Baseball.Wakamatsu then dismissed all of the coaching staff hired under the McLaren-Riggleman tenure, and hired Ty Van Burkleo as bench coach and Lee Tinsley as first base coach, while Rick Adair and John Wetteland were hired as the pitching and bullpen coaches respectively.