Bloomquist working on perception

SEATTLE – Despite his recent success, utilityman Willie Bloomquist hasn’t convinced Seattle Mariners manager Mike Hargrove that he’s an everyday player.
But the Seattle-area product might be making progress.
“He has opened a lot of people’s eyes and he has impressed me,” Hargrove said. “Has he changed my mind about him being a utility player? Not necessarily, yet. But he’s gone down that road quite a ways.”
Bloomquist – who has started 29 of Seattle’s past 31 games – took a .272 average into Wednesday’s game against the Minnesota Twins (a game which was tied 3-3 in extra innings at press time).
Not bad considering Bloomquist was hitting .197 on July 2 – the day the Mariners designated second baseman Bret Boone for assignment.
Since then, Bloomquist has been in the lineup nearly every day, mostly at second base. Bloomquist hit .319 in July and is hitting .345 with three multihit games in August.
He has played 15 games at second base, 24 at shortstop, 16 in the outfield and three at third base.
So what’s it going to take to change Hargrove’s mind?
“In baseball, it takes about two days to get a reputation and about eight years to break it,” Hargrove said. “It takes some time and it takes a very unique individual to be able to be patient with that time.
“But if it’s going to get changed, Willie can do it.”
Indications are Bloomquist is well on his way. Bloomquist had only 16 at-bats in April and again in June. However, in July and August, he has a total of 105.
“If you try to go out and impress someone, you’re not being yourself,” Bloomquist said. “If I continue to work hard like I did with all of my other managers (Lou Piniella and Bob Melvin), then hopefully over the course of time my talent and the way I play the game will get noticed.”
Hernandez impresses
Asked to reflect on 19-year-old Felix Hernandez’s performance Tuesday, Mike Hargrove’s first response didn’t come out the way he meant it.
“Nothing in particular stands out,” the Mariners’ manager said Wednesday.
Nothing? Hernandez stymied the Twins on five hits in eight shutout innings in one of the Mariners’ best pitching performances of the season.
“The whole thing was good,” Hargrove said. “He threw a lot of strikes, fielded his position well, kept his composure when the error was made to load the bases.
“He did things to keep the game in order. But not just one thing stands out.”
Well one thing.
Besides the fastball that consistently reached 97 mph and sometimes 98, Hernandez threw a sharp-breaking curveball and had control of it the entire game.
“He is so consistent with it,” Hargrove said. “When you can get that pitch over and throw a 97 mph fastball, it makes the fastball seem like it’s 197. That makes your job as a hitter twice as difficult.”
Hargrove said Hernandez would start nine more times for the Mariners, the next being Monday against the Royals at Safeco Field.
Super Soriano
Injured relief pitcher Rafael Soriano threw 27 pitches in a simulated game Wednesday afternoon and, unless he arrives at the ballpark today with a sore arm, could return to real games by this weekend.
Soriano, who appeared close to rejoining the Mariners after several strong outings on a minor league rehab assignment last month, instead came down with a sore shoulder and has been working his way back. He had “Tommy John” elbow surgery last August and was ahead of schedule in his comeback before the shoulder problem.Pitching coach Bryan Price said Soriano threw well Wednesday and felt good during the simulated game.
“He was extremely sharp with his fastball, slider and change,” Price said. “He threw all of them for strikes and had good command, good life on the ball and everything was really good. The shoulder is a non-issue as far as there is no pain and there doesn’t seem to be any strength deficit.”
Price said it’s important for Soriano to pitch in the majors this season to ease his own mind going into next year.
“Is it imperative? No,” Price said. “But it probably would help him. We know what he can do when he’s healthy but for him, I think it would be nice knowing that he’s going to have his good stuff when he reports for spring training.”
Notes
Hargrove said he has decided who will start Saturday’s game but wasn’t ready to announce it. Ryan Franklin will be eligible to come off his 10-game suspension for violating baseball’s steroid policy and he threw a simulated game Monday that would put him on scheduled to start Saturday. However, right-hander Jeff Harris, who started in Franklin’s place Sunday in a 3-1 loss at Chicago, also is a possibility. … Right-handed pitcher Jorge Campillo’s “Tommy John” elbow surgery has been scheduled for Aug. 23. … Ichiro Suzuki and Raul Ibanez are the only Mariners to have played all 113 games this season.