By Justin Worsley
In 2008, Seattle was 61-101 and had the second-worst record in the league. The team then cleaned house, firing their coaching staff and bringing in Oakland bench coach Don Wakamatsu. The move paid off early as Seattle improved to 85-77 in 2009 and saw the return of Ken Griffey Jr., arguably the most well-known player in franchise history.
This season, however, was a forgettable one and it has now cost Wakamatsu his job. The Mariners announced on Monday that they have fired the coach. Wakamatsu was 127-147 in his tenure.
Seattle had high hopes this season after having a good 1-2 punch at the top of their pitching rotation with Felix Hernandez and Cliff Lee. Lee was ultimately traded to Texas after Seattle slipped to 16 games behind Texas for the division lead.
Last June, Griffey also retired following a miserable start to a season marred by rumors that he was sleeping in the clubhouse during a game.
Seattle crumbled in July, going 6-23 for the month. The Mariners were 2-4 to start off August until Wakamatsu was fired.
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