Wolcott’s Ready To Deliver Young Pitcher Hopes To Give M’S Season Of Quality Starts

Bob Wolcott will never forget the inning.

“What further proof do you need?” Lou Piniella asked.

To the surprise of many, Piniella used Wolcott as the Seattle starter in Game 1 of the A.L. Championship Series against Cleveland last October.

Piniella’s gamble paid off, but only after a nerve-racking start. After walking Kenny Lofton, Omar Vizquel and Carlos Baerga to lead off the game, Wolcott got out of the first inning without a run.

And the Mariners won 3-2.

Wolcott wasn’t intimidated by the powerful Indians’ lineup that featured Albert Belle and Eddie Murray.

“It was just incredible,” Wolcott said. “As far as the Indians went, they were just another team to me.”

On that tension-filled night in the Kingdome before 57,065 Kingdome fans, Wolcott pitched seven innings. He didn’t pitch another inning in the series that the Indians won the series in six games for the A.L. pennant.

He’ll get a chance to pitch a lot of innings for the Mariners in his first full major-league season as Piniella scrambles to come up with a starting rotation that lost Andy Benes and Tim Belcher after the team’s A.L. West championship season. The right-hander still is only 22, too. As far as his manager is concerned, Wolcott pitches like he’s 32.

“I like everything about the kid,” Piniella said. “He’s aggressive on the mound, he throws strikes and he’s got a good feel for pitching.”

The Mariners called up Wolcott, their second-round draft selection in June 1992, from Triple-A Tacoma on Aug. 18.

On Aug. 18, he beat Boston and Tim Wakefield 9-3 in Seattle in his major-league debut. He finished with a 3-2 record and a 4.42 ERA in six Seattle starts and 36-2/3 innings with 19 strikeouts and 14 walks.

Piniella likes Wolcott because he’s a smart pitcher with control who befuddles hitters by changing speeds dramatically.

He has a 90 mph fastball and he has an 83 mph fastball, too. Then there are his fastballs in between.

But, most of all, he likes Wolcott’s demeanor. He’s a rookie who has pitched like a veteran for him.

“He’s ready to go,” Piniella said.

“I’d like to win 12, 13, 14 games,” Wolcott said. “I’d like to pitch above .500 and help my team win games. I’d like to throw a lot of innings. I’d like to have a long, solid year.”

The Mariners need Wolcott to pitch well and often. After A.L. Cy Young Award winner Randy Johnson, former Yankees left-hander Sterling Hitchcock and Wolcott, they have a lot of question marks.

Chris Bosio, a 10-game winner last season, is coming off his seventh knee operation.

Piniella said Friday that he has Wolcott penciled in to pitch in the third game of the season April 3 against the Chicago White Sox in Seattle.

Wolcott knows how important it is for him to have a strong season if the Mariners are to repeat as the division champions.

“You’ve got to get it done,” he said. “I’m not taking it lightly.”

Wolcott didn’t have any timetable when he signed with the Mariners out of high school in Medford, Ore. He knew if he pitched well, he’d be in Seattle before he knew it. He started last season at Double-A Port City.

What he didn’t know in his first season in the Mariners’ organization in Bellingham in 1992 was the difference between high school hitters and professional hitters.

“I was overwhelmed,” he said. “I couldn’t believe it. In high school, I threw my worst pitch and nobody hit it. After I signed, I threw my best pitch and watched it sail over the fence.”