MARINERS

Dang it. I thought Brandon Morrow was perfect. He's not. The Rangers scored a run on him yesterday. That's it. The season's over.

OK, now that I got that out of my system, I can be a little more intelligent. A little.

Though Morrow did give up a run to the Rangers, his place on the squad might have even been enhanced, because he worked out of a one-out, bases-loaded jam. And he wasn't hit as hard as Miguel Batista or Eric O'Flaherty.

Which just reinforces the notion the pitching staff is in for trouble. And without an improved staff, it will be tough to improve on last year's record.

But Morrow could be a part of any improvement, as this John McGrath column points out.

Today's hot list …

• The best story of the day, and of the week, comes from the Times. It relates the relationship between M's catcher Kenji Johjima and Japan's greatest hitter of all time, Sadaharu Oh. It's worth spending a little time with.

• One way for the M's to improve the offense is to draw more walks. That has been a point of emphasis for the team this spring, and it seems to be working – a little.

• You know spring training is really winding downwhen the players start shipping their cars north.

• The Sports Network sees only one team able to duplicate the Tigers rise from the cellar to the Series this year, and that's the Mariners. The note well down in this story.

• This is tough to pass on, but Bill the Beerman died recently.

And our question for the day …

• Now that it looks like Morrow is going to make the team, how much of an impact do you think he will have? It seems that if you are going to keep him on the big club, you better pitch him. My guess is, first starter to falter (ie. Jeff Weaver), then Morrow steps in. What is your take?

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