critics at the time to be a good hire. At an October 2008 press conference following his hiring, Zduriencik got right to the point in introducing his philosophy going forward in Seattle: “I'd love to have guys with good makeup and good character, committed to the city and the ballclub. But, when all is said and done, talent wins.” One of Zduriencik's first moves was hiring Don Wakamatsu, the first Asian-American manager in MLB history. Next, during the Major League Baseball Winter Meetings in Las Vegas, Nevada, Zduriencik made a remarkable three-team, 12-player trade that sent star closer J. J. Putz to the New York Mets as well as prospect second baseman Luis Valbuena to the Cleveland Indians. In return, the Mariners received outfielders Franklin Gutiérrez and Endy Chávez and first baseman Mike Carp, a prospect in the Mets' organization, as well as starting pitcher prospect Jason Vargas. During the beginning of spring training, Zduriencik signed Mariners fan favorite Ken Griffey Jr. to a one-year deal. After an 85-77 finish in 2009, Zduriencik's teams slumped to 61-101 in 2010, 67-95 in 2011, 75-87 in 2012, and 71-91 in 2013. On December 7, 2013, Seattle Times columnist Geoff Baker wrote a scathing article about Zduriencik, quoting past employees to show that he is difficult to work with. He was accused of lying about knowledge of Josh Lueke's criminal past before a trade with the Tampa Bay Rays. He is also accused of lying on his original job application that he has an advanced knowledge of and fondness for contemporary baseball Sabermetrics of the Billy Beane mold, knowing that it would be beneficial in getting him hired. An employee whom Zduriencik fired, Tony Blengino, made the claim that he, not Zduriencik, falsified Jack's resume, according to Baker's article in the Seattle Times: "Blengino, who was working for the Milwaukee Brewers with Zduriencik at the time, said he authored virtually the entire job application package Zduriencik gave the Mariners in 2008, depicting a dual-threat candidate melding traditional scouting with advanced statistical analysis." Asked to respond to accusations by former manager Eric Wedge and Blengino, Zduriencik said: “I am aware of some of the comments of former members of our baseball operations group, and I find them unjust, misleading and one-sided. I don’t believe the airing of ‘dirty laundry’ should take place in the public arena, so I am not going to talk about