Griffey Already Has Hr Stroke
The American League couldn’t stop Ken Griffey Jr. last year, and the Cactus League fared no better Friday.
As the Seattle Mariners opened their 1998 spring exhibition season, Griffey picked up where he left off in 1997 - with a long home run - and the Mariners did something they didn’t do enough of a year ago.
They got a late lead and held it, with Bobby Ayala working a 1-2-3 ninth inning as Seattle held on to defeat the Chicago Cubs, 7-6.
“It was fun just playing a game where the pitcher was wearing a different uniform,” Rich Amaral said. “Most of us have been hitting against our own pitchers all spring.”
Seattle used a six-run fifth inning, complete with two-run homers by Griffey and Jay Buhner, to grab a 6-3 lead against Chicago. But by the eighth inning, the Cubs had rallied to tie it.
With most of his regulars already gone, manager Lou Piniella played a different brand of baseball, and catcher Dusty Wathan’s hit-and-run single set up an RBI single by outfielder Rickey Cradle in the bottom of the eighth.
“It was a good game,” Piniella said. “When our kids are in there, we’re going to try some different things. You might even see a squeeze, which I normally never think about in spring training.
“We got a couple of home runs from guys you figure to have hit home runs, and Ayala closed it out.”
The Mariners’ pitching was what one might expect for a spring opener. Jamie Moyer threw a pair of scoreless innings, Makoto Suzuki pitched well in relief - the one run charged to him scored after he’d left the game - and relievers Tony Fossas and Ayala were perfect.
Jarod Juelsgaard, Bob Wells and Randy Veres wobbled.
“They didn’t pitch well, but that’s what spring is for, they’ll get better,” Piniella said.
The Mariners had 13 hits, two each by Joey Cora, David Segui and Buhner.
Piniella, Johnson have chat
In their longest conversation of the spring, Piniella and Randy Johnson talked for nearly 20 minutes Friday during batting practice. Several times, Piniella grew animated, and each did a lot of talking. Afterward, Johnson walked past reporters without a word - and Piniella said he preferred to keep the conversation “private.”
Cubs honor Caray
The Cubs’ lineup was without many Chicago regulars because they’d flown to Chicago with team executives to participate in a memorial service for announcer Harry Caray.
In the “Oops” Department: As part of a quick tribute to Caray on Friday, the Mariners asked for a moment of silence before the game - and the Peoria Stadium scoreboard misspelled Caray’s name.
Notes
Seattle hosts San Diego today in Peoria Stadium at 12:05 p.m (PST). Starting pitchers: Kevin Brown for the Padres vs. the M’s Ken Cloude… . M’s utility player Charles Gipson took a throw off the tip of his right middle finger, splitting it open and costing him a fingernail… . Seattle left-hander Greg McCarthy has a tender shoulder and won’t pitch until Sunday at the earliest.