Spring Thing

Jason Michael Barker

Greetings from sunny Arizona, where it's, er, not so sunny these days. Personally, I think someone is playing some sort of horrible joke on me - it's my first trip to spring training, and somehow the weather hasn't been everything it was supposed to be.

Now, don't get me wrong, because I'm not one who enjoys basking in 90-degree heat. Friday was quite pleasant (read: "not too hot"), but the game I went to Saturday actually had to be stopped on account of rain. This wasn't a light drizzle, either -- it was an open-up-the-sky, cats-and-dogs downpour. The game resumed a few minutes later, but the middle innings were played under gray, rainy skies.

That's about the only thing I can possibly complain about, however, as the rest of the trip has been fabulous. I'll warn you that this column contains more than an ample amount of gushing, but what can I say -- it's my first time being at spring training, and the old "kid in a candy store" clich? is more than accurate.

Day One: Tempe, Mariners vs. Angels.
First, a little bit of background: I'm down here courtesy of the Grand Salami, the unofficial program of the Seattle Mariners, with the specific purpose of covering the team's minor leaguers. As such, most of the stories contained here involve the M's, but don't let that turn you off.

When we arrived at Tempe Diablo Stadium Friday we weren't expecting to have media credentials waiting for us, but that didn't stop us from getting free parking by telling the attendant that we were on our way to pick up said credential. Money saved: $5. Next stop was the ticket window, where simply saying "we're here picking up a credential" was good enough to get the nice woman behind the gate to let us in, no questions asked.

My first thought upon entering the stadium was of a minor league park -- it reminded me quite a bit of Cheney Stadium (home of the AAA Pacific Coast League's Tacoma Rainiers), complete with the big wall in centerfield and the freeway in the background.

Just then, thoughts of a pristine minor league field were shattered by a crushing blow off the bat of none other than Jose Canseco, who hit a ball well over the lawn seating in left field. It was batting practice, sure, but Canseco can still hit the ball a ton. He can still do some of the other things he used to do as well, like striking out on a Jamie Moyer change-up in the second inning and then complaining to the ump about something or other.

Moyer was hit hard by the Angles during his three innings of work, but came away largely unscathed in the runs department. With injuries to youngsters Ryan Anderson and Gil Meche this spring, the Mariners need Moyer to revert to his pre-2000 form and eat up some innings in the starting rotation.

Day Two: Peoria, Brewers vs. Mariners.
It was an early start Saturday, as we arrived at the Peoria Sports Complex in time to watch the minor leaguers work out on the assorted practice fields that surround the stadium itself. Call me a geek, but I could sit and watch these guys hit, pitch and field for hours and never get bored. Much of this is because you can get so close to the players -- I stood literally feet from top outfield prospect Chris Snelling while he hit in the cage. I'm taller than him, but I'm pretty sure he could tackle me if the opportunity arose.

One humorous moment came when a young pitcher said to new AAA pitching coach Chris Bosio, who hasn't pitched in the majors since 1996, "Hey, I thought I read that you were with somebody this spring. You're not pitching anymore? No, really, I thought you were in camp somewhere." The portly right-hander had a good chuckle over that one.

Saturday was also my first chance to see Japanese sensation Ichiro, slated to be Seattle's opening day right fielder. He can definitely run the bases and he looks good in the field, getting a good jump on balls and displaying a strong throwing arm. Unlike other Japanese hitters, he no longer employs the high leg kick when he bats, having shunned it when he made the move to the United States; look closely, however, and you can see the remnants of it when he swings.

Day Three: Tempe, Mariners vs. Angels.
Who's making this schedule, anyway? I'm only in town for four days, but I'm going to see the Angles three times. Still no sign of Glaus or Salmon, but Erstad started and hit leadoff. On the pitching side, Anaheim starter Russ Ortiz went four strong innings and showed off a very nice fastball-slider combination, and both pitches had quite a bit of movement. Ortiz finished last season on a good note and could be primed for a breakout season in 2001.

It was also something of a breakout game for Seatte's shortstop of the future, Antonio Perez. Perez hit two ringing doubles off the wall in left-center field Sunday, ran the bases well, and drew a walk. He looked a bit nervous in the field -- including making an error on what should have been a relatively routine backhanded stop -- but that could be because was playing second instead of his usual position.

I'm in town one more day before flying out Tuesday morning, so hopefully the weather will pick up a bit for Monday's game between the Mariners and? the Angels. Again. Honestly, between the rain and three games against Disney's company softball team, I'd swear someone is out to make my first trip to spring training a bore. But don't worry, they're not succeeding -- spring training is a blast, and I highly recommend planning a trip to Arizona or Florida next year.

about the author

There is no truth to the rumors that Jason Michael Barker was asked to try out for the third lefty reliever job in Anaheim's bullpen this spring, particularly since he can't even throw left-handed. Remind him at jmb@strikethree.com that such details haven't stopped the likes of Norm Charlton from hanging around the past couple of seasons.

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