The human hitting machine, Ichiro Suzuki has 1,139 hits during five-plus seasons in the majors. Few have have felt as good as one in the fourth inning on Wednesday. "I was just about as happy as when I got my first hit," said the Japanese star, who stopped an 0-for-18 slump. "I wanted to keep the ball." Ichiro ended his slide and so did Seattle. |
Journey's "Don't Stop Believin"' was playing in the Indians' clubhouse following most of the team's 43 home wins last season. It was soft, melodic, unthreatening. On Tuesday night, Atreyu, a hardcore outfit from Southern California, was the preferred house band -- and their new CD with chugging guitar riffs and pounding drums threatened to peel paint. |
Spring was going along nicely for the mariners until March 23, when CF Jeremy Reed broke a bone in his right wrist. He'll be out for at least six weeks and the Mariners are scrambling for a replacement. Seattle opens April with one of the toughest schedules in the American League; if the Mariners get through April with a decent record, their string of 90-loss seasons might be in jeopardy. ROTATION: 1. LHP Jamie Moyer 2. RHP Joel Pineiro 3. |
Seattle Mariners pitcher Felix Hernandez was scratched from his scheduled start on Tuesday against the Chicago Cubs. The 19-year-old right-hander developed shin splints on Sunday, and the team says he's skipping the start as a precaution. Hernandez had the leg taped on Monday and walked without a limp when he joined the team for warmups on the practice field. Hernandez impressed when he came up last season, going 4-4 with a 2.67 ERA and 77 strikeouts in 84 1-3 innings. |
Tim Salmon homered and drove in three runs to help the Los Angeles Angels rout the Seattle Mariners 15-4 on Sunday. The 37-year-old Salmon, who is coming off a year's layoff following knee and shoulder surgery, went 2-for-3 with three runs scored. Fighting for a spot on the roster, Salmon has been hitting well this spring (14-for-42). Successful rotator cuff surgery on his left shoulder is allowing him to swing freely for the first time in several years. |
--RHP Felix Hernandez had a precautionary X-ray Monday that came back negative, supporting the original diagnosis that the starting pitcher has shin splints. He's doing all his normal work except anything that puts pressure on his heavily taped right leg. He has supplanted running with work in the pool, "but I don't like it as much as running," he said. --LHP George Sherrill, who has not pitched since March 20, threw on the side Monday. |
Manager Mike Hargrove is waiting for a reliever or three to make a case for the final two open spots in the Seattle bullpen. The wait to date has been anything but pleasant. Seattle's end-of-the-bullpen relievers have been pounded with consistency by Cactus League hitters. Right-handers Scott Atchison (14.53 ERA), Francisco Cruceta (4.50), Emiliano Fruto (19.06) Sean Green (11.37) and Clint Nageotte (6.23) and lefties Luis E. Gonzalez (9.00) and Jake Woods (8. |
Michael Barrett homered leading off the ninth inning Tuesday in the Chicago Cubs' 4-3 win over the Seattle Mariners on Tuesday. Barrett, who had three hits, connected on a 3-2 pitch off Stephen Kahn. Chicago's Angel Pagan hit a three-run homer in the eighth that tied the game. His chances to make the team as an outfielder improved Tuesday when Marquis Grissom retired. |
Laynce Nix hit two homers, including a grand slam, and drove in seven runs for the Texas Rangers in a 10-9 loss to the Seattle Mariners on Monday night. Nix, who came in batting only .190, also had a two-run double and finished 3-for-4. He had been limited most of the spring while working his way back from right shoulder surgery that ended his 2005 season after 63 games. He also had surgery on his left shoulder in the offseason. |
Seattle Mariners center fielder Jeremy Reed has a sprained right wrist and not a broken wrist, as the team originally thought. Reed rejoined the team Tuesday, a day after he was examined in Seattle. He resumed throwing, running and every baseball activity except swinging a bat. Reed said he was "relieved, and excited. It's still tender and sore, but I'm certainly happy it's not broken. |
