Mariners | Wakamatsu shakes up coaching staff

Don Wakamatsu, the new Mariners' manager, has decided not to retain veteran coaches Mel Stottlemyre and Lee Elia on his 2009 staff.

Stottlemyre, who was the M's pitching coach last season, and Elia, who served a variety of roles and finished the year as Jim Riggleman's bench coach, confirmed their departure to The Seattle Times on Monday.

It is expected that Ty Van Burkleo, 45, who served the past two seasons as the Oakland A's hitting coach, will become the Mariners' bench coach.

Wakamatsu, hired last week, flew home to Texas on Monday after spending several days in Seattle in meetings with general manager Jack Zduriencik.

"We had considerable discussions about formulating his staff, but we don't have anything finalized yet," Zduriencik said Monday afternoon.

Stottlemyre, 67, became the Mariners' pitching coach last year after a 10-year stint with the Yankees that resulted in four World Series championships. He said he heard over the weekend from Wakamatsu, who told him he had decided to bring in a new pitching coach.

"I had a desire to come back, but at the same time, I let them know that a new manager should be able to bring in his own coaching staff," Stottlemyre said on Monday.

It is not immediately known who will be Seattle's new pitching coach. However, it is not expected to be former A's and Mets coach Rick Peterson, who had been a rumored candidate.

Stottlemyre, an Issaquah resident, praised Wakamatsu for the manner in which he handled the situation.

"We had a nice conversation, very cordial," he said. "He said he wanted to be the one to give me the news. That was first class. A lot of guys would have taken the easy way out. I've heard nothing but positive things about Don. I know there's great respect for him in the game."

Elia said Monday that Wakamatsu also called him over the weekend to tell him he was going to go in a different direction.

"I congratulated Don on getting the job, because he's a hell of a guy," said Elia, who served on Lou Piniella's Mariners staff as hitting coach from 1993-97.

"It's not really a feeling of disappointment, because I've been there myself. Everyone should have a choice of picking people they're familiar with. That's the case now. He said he would probably bring in all new faces. I understand that. He has to have loyalty and trust from his coaches, and you find that from people you've worked with."

Elia, 71, said he hopes to remain in the Seattle organization as a special assistant, the role in which he began the 2008 season. But when Jeff Pentland was fired on June 9, Elia became hitting coach, and moved to bench coach when Riggleman replaced fired manager John McLaren on June 19.

"There still may be something I can do for Seattle before it's over," he said. "The initial job was a great job."

The status of the other holdover coaches, Norm Charlton (bullpen) and Jose Castro (hitting), was not immediately known. Zduriencik said "there's a chance" that the club would retain a coach from last year's staff.

Riggleman, third-base coach Sam Perlozzo and first-base coach Eddie Rodriguez have already taken new positions. Riggleman will be the bench coach for the Washington Nationals; Perlozzo joined the Phillies' staff, most likely as third-base coach; and Rodriguez became a special assignments coach for the Royals.

Both Stottlemyre and Elia said they expected the Mariners to rebound from last year's disastrous 101-loss season. But Stottlemyre expressed regret that he couldn't coax better performances out of his pitching staff.

"We had a chance to do something pretty good, pitching wise, and a lot of things just didn't happen," he said. "We didn't pitch to our capabilities. I evaluate my time here as pretty much a failure, which bothers me a little."

Stottlemyre said he won't actively pursue another coaching job but didn't completely rule out a return to uniform.

"As of this moment, I'm retired," he said.

Note

• The Mariners announced that Wakamatsu will wear uniform No. 22, his old college number at Arizona State, next season. At his introductory news conference, Wakamatsu donned No. 16, the number he wore in Oakland as the A's bench coach.