Mariners In Search Of A Backup For Their Backstop Seattle Hopes To Be Able To Rest Catcher Wilson This Season

By the end of last season, Dan Wilson was run down.

Perhaps it was the 50,000-plus miles the Seattle Mariners traveled last season, the most in baseball history.

Maybe it was the major-league-leading 144 games Wilson caught.

But by the end, Wilson had little left. In the American League division series against Baltimore, Wilson batted 0 for 13 with nine strikeouts. Seattle manager Lou Piniella even considered what was previously unthinkable - benching Wilson.

Piniella admitted as much prior to Game 4 of the series, which the Orioles won to eliminate Seattle from the playoffs.

Piniella said one of his goals this season is to rest his regulars more, especially Wilson. Left-handed hitting Rick Wilkins, who hit 30 home runs in 1993 for the Chicago Cubs, is the leading contender to back up Wilson.

“If we can get him (Wilson) five days a week and rest him a couple, it’s a nice situation,” Piniella said last week. “With Danny, what we’ve noticed is that when he wears down it’s hard to get him his second wind. We’ll try to prevent that this year.”

Wilson has done his part in the off-season, working out in the weight room and gaining back the 15 pounds he lost last season.

Wilson, who hit .270 with 15 homers and 74 RBIs last season, bristles when asked whether he hopes to cut back on the number of games he plays this year.

“I don’t even think about that,” he said. “If I can be on the field and help the team win, I want to be out there.”

Wilson did, however, admit he’ll continue to experiment with new workouts and nutritional plans in an effort to stay strong at the end of the season.

“There are things to try,” he said. “Hopefully, we’ll find the right formula at some point.”

Quote of the day

Outfielder Glenallen Hill, on the media’s criticism of his defensive play:

“My father taught me when I was 10 years old, ‘Never let anyone influence how you feel about yourself.’ It’s easier to criticize than it is to do the research. I can play. I had choices, I took less money to sign here. Why? Because you win games, you make friends. I figure I’m going to make a lot of friends this season.”