SEATTLE MARINERS HIRE TY VAN BURKLEO AS BENCH COACH AND LEE TINSLEY AS FIRST BASE COACH

Van Burkleo and Tinsley become first additions to Don Wakamatsu's coaching staff.

SEATTLE, Wash. -- Seattle Mariners Executive Vice President & General Manager of Baseball Operations Jack Zduriencik and Field Manager Don Wakamatsu announced today that the club has named Ty Van Burkleo as bench coach and Lee Tinsley as first base coach.

"Don and our baseball operations staff are working closely in forming this coaching staff and we are excited to welcome Ty Van Burkleo and Lee Tinsley to our organization," said Zduriencik. "They both have experience working with Don, which is a very positive step towards building a foundation of team unity. Lee has some Mariner ties as a former player and Ty has spent the last few years as a coach in our division."

Van Burkleo (van-burke-LEE-owe), 46, joins the Mariners after serving the last two seasons as the hitting coach for the Oakland A's. Prior to that, Van Burkleo was the minor league roving hitting instructor in the Los Angeles Angels organization. His ties with Wakamatsu go back to when the two were minor league coaches together in the Arizona Diamondbacks organization from 1997 to 1999. Van Burkleo was a coach on Wakamatsu's staff at Single-A High Desert (1998) and Double-A El Paso (1999).

Van Burkleo played professionally for 14 seasons, including Major League stints with the California Angels (1993) and Colorado Rockies (1994). He made his Major League debut with the Angels on July 28, 1993 and hit .152 with one home run for the Halos. He also played five seasons in Japan for Seibu (1987-90) and Hiroshima (1991).

Tinsley, 38, joins the Mariners after serving the last three seasons as the first base coach for the Arizona Diamondbacks. With the D-Backs, Tinsley also oversaw outfield instruction, helping mentor the development of young outfielders Chris Young and Justin Upton. After a 14-year playing career, Tinsley made his coaching debut as the hitting coach at Double-A El Paso. Tinsley and Wakamatsu were both roving minor league instructors in the Los Angeles Angels organization in 2002.

A veteran of 14 professional seasons, Tinsley appeared in 361 Major League games with the Mariners (1993, 1997), Red Sox (1994-96) and Phillies (1996). He appeared in 49 games for the Mariners in 1997, his last season in the Majors.

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MARINERS OFFER RAUL IBANEZ ARBITRATION

Mariners can still negotiate with Utility Players Willie Bloomquist and Miguel Cairo.

SEATTLE, Wash. -- Seattle Mariners Executive Vice President & General Manager of Baseball Operations Jack Zduriencik announced today that the club has offered free agent outfielder Raul Ibanez arbitration. Seattle chose not to offer arbitration to its other two eligible players, utility men Willie Bloomquist and Miguel Cairo.

The deadline to offer arbitration to eligible players is 9 p.m. (PST) tonight.

"With the deadline tonight, offering Raul arbitration keeps all of our options open," Zduriencik said. "We can continue our conversations with any, or all, of our free agents but, by rule, we had to offer Raul arbitration by today to guarantee we could receive draft-pick compensation if he ends up signing elsewhere."

Ibanez, 36, played all 162 games with Seattle last season. He hit .293 with 43 doubles, 23 home runs and 110 RBI. Among American League leaders, Raul ranked among the top-10 in RBI (5th), hits (186/T6th), intentional walks (11/7th), total bases (304/9th), extra-base hits (69/T10th) and outfield assists (9/T10th). Since re-signing with Seattle prior to the 2004 season, Ibanez has played in 632 of the team's 648 games.

The Mariners retain the right to negotiate with free-agent Willie Bloomquist. Bloomquist, 31, played in 71 games with Seattle last season, making 40 starts at six different positions: 2B-4, 3B-1, SS-11, LF-1, CF-16 and RF-7. He hit .279 with a double and 9 RBI. Bloomquist stole 14 bases in 17 attempts.

The Mariners retain the right to negotiate with free-agent Miguel Cairo. Cairo, 34, played in 108 games with Seattle last season, making 53 starts at four different positions: 1B-37, 2B-3, 3B-12 and DF-1. He hit .249 with 14 doubles, 2 triples and 23 RBI. Cairo stole 5 bases in 7 attempts.

Neither Bloomquist nor Cairo was a "ranking" free agent, so there is no opportunity for draft-pick compensation for those two players.

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ARBITRATION PRIMER

If a player has filed for free agency, his former club must offer him arbitration by December 1.
** If the player accepts by Dec. 7, he becomes club property again, returns to the roster, and the two sides may continue to negotiate on a new contract or go to an arbitration hearing.

** If the player declines, the sides may continue to negotiate on a new contract.
** A club offering arbitration to a player who has filed for free agency retains the right to draft-pick compensation (if eligible) if he signs elsewhere. The club forfeits compensation (if eligible) if it does not offer arbitration.