M’s Reed determined to have better year
A disappointment to himself and the Seattle Mariners as a rookie last season, young center fielder Jeremy Reed is determined to be better.
“I feel like I had a very mediocre year,” Reed said. “I believe just being able to go through it is one way to get better. I’ve been through more situations. That’s all going to help.”
Acquired in a trade in June 2004 that sent right-hander Freddy Garcia to the Chicago White Sox, Reed thought he was ready to have a big season in 2005 in Seattle after hitting .397 in 18 games in the last month of the season.
He wasn’t exactly a flop last season, but he wasn’t a hit, either. He played particularly well defensively, starting 129 games in center, but struggled at the plate at times, hitting a soft .254 in 141 games.
He had 33 doubles, three triples, three homers and 45 RBIs, with 12 stolen bases and 61 runs scored.
New Mariners hitting coach Jeff Pentland has made Reed a special project in spring training in Arizona because Reed is considered a key hitter for a team that ranked last in the American League with a .256 batting average last season and a team that lost 93 games to finish last in the A.L. West for the second straight year.
“Jeremy’s one of our priorities right now because he’s our center fielder and we just need to make him better,” Pentland said. “We’re spending a lot of time with him to take care of some of the holes he has and just to make him a better hitter.”
“Kevin Appier pitched three hitless innings in the Mariners’ 8-7 win over the Milwaukee Brewers, a boost to the 38-year-old non-roster invitee.
Appier has pitched in just two regular-season games in 29 months since elbow surgery.
Appier relieved in the third inning and hit Geoff Jenkins, his first batter, with a soft pitch. He then retired seven in a row before J.J. Hardy reached on an error.
Rueter retires
Kirk Rueter retired, ending a 13-year major league career during which he became the winningest left-handed pitcher in San Francisco Giants history.
Rueter finished with a 130-92 record and a 4.27 ERA. He won 105 games after joining the Giants near the end of the 1996 season, surpassing Mike McCormick last year as the winningest lefty in San Francisco history.
Rueter went 2-7 with a 5.95 ERA in 2005 and was designated for assignment on Aug. 14. No team signed him during the off-season.
Around the league
Backup catcher Robert Fick of the Washington Nationals had surgery on his right elbow. … Kansas City Royals’ left-hander Mark Redman underwent arthroscopic surgery on his left knee to fix a lateral cartilage tear. … Chicago Cubs second baseman Jerry Hairston said he is feeling fine a day after being hit in the head by a pitch from San Francisco’s Kevin Correia.