Cirillo makes a point

Published 9:00 pm Sunday, June 27, 2004

Before Jeff Cirillo dug in for his first at-bat in the second inning Sunday, many in the Safeco Field crowd were booing him.

They booed him again after he blasted Jamie Moyer’s first pitch to him over the left-field fence for a three-run home run that helped the San Diego Padres beat the Seattle Mariners 5-1.

And they booed some more as Cirillo crossed the plate, raised his hand and wagged a finger – no not that one – toward the grandstand.

An angry gesture to the crowd that chided him during his two frustrating seasons with the Mariners? A point of protest toward the press box and the writers who’d been critical of his play in Seattle?

Not even close.

Cirillo, who hadn’t hit a home run this season, was saluting his son, Cole, in a way that one of his favorite players used to do.

“I flicked my finger kind of Pedro Guerrero style,” Cirillo said. “Guerrero used to do that and I loved it. I said ‘If I ever hit a homer, when I came to home plate I’d give him a little flick of the finger.’”

Sunday’s home run was Cirillo’s first since May, 2003.

“As far as home runs go in my career, I can’t think of any that felt better,” he said. “It was great to come back here and get a big hit in a place where I had some struggles.”

Time for a rest: No Mariner has played as many innings as Ichiro Suzuki, and manager Bob Melvin knows he must give his star leadoff hitter some rest or risk a repeat of the past two years.

Suzuki wore down late in the 2002 and 2003 seasons, and already he has played in all 73 games. Not only that, but he has played in all but one inning, the ninth of last Tuesday’s game at Texas.

Melvin knows he can’t wait until the All-Star break for Suzuki to get a breather because Suzuki likely is the only Mariner who’ll go to the game in Houston on July 13.

“He never gets those three days off,” Melvin said. “So I am probably looking to give him one day (off) before the All-Star Game.”

Thirteen games remain until then.

Debut day: On the third day of his second stint in the major leagues, Matt Thornton finally pitched for the Mariners on Sunday, and he performed impressively.

Thornton, a hard-throwing left-hander who was called up Friday to beef up a worn-down bullpen, pitched four scoreless innings and allowed three hits and a walk in relief of starter Jamie Moyer.

He fought a case of nervousness, plus a missed call by plate umpire Marvin Hudson that led to a walk of his first hitter, but Thornton rebounded well with a fastball that reached 96 mph.

“I was bad in the bullpen. The ball was all over the place,” Thornton said. “But I settled down pretty good.”

Melvin certainly noticed.

“You’re fighting the whole nerves thing and all of a sudden you pop one right where you want to and it’s called a ball,” Melvin said. “To recover like that and overmatch some guys with a good-looking fastball, it’s very impressive.”

Anniversary: Sunday was the fifth anniversary of the Mariners’ final game in the Kingdome, and the team played a video tribute to their indoor baseball era before the game.

Kirby Arnold, Herald Writer