Mariners have full schedule in Arizona

Published 9:00 pm Tuesday, November 25, 2003

SEATTLE – When the Seattle Mariners announced their 2004 spring training schedule Tuesday, two words described the reaction at an office in Peoria, Ariz.

“Thank goodness!” said John Richardson, executive director of the Peoria Diamond Club.

Unlike last year, when the Mariners planned early departure for Japan hurt spring training attendance in Peoria, the 2004 schedule has the M’s playing all but two of their 30 exhibition games in Arizona. The Mariners will play 17 games at the Peoria Sports Complex, beginning March 4, and two April 3 and 4 in San Diego at the Padres’ new Petco Park.

The Mariners aren’t expected to release their regular-season schedule until next week, but the opener is scheduled for April 6 against Anaheim at Safeco Field.

Amid the inconvenience the Mariners experienced with their planned trip to Japan last year, and then the cancellation of it because of the war in Iraq, the impact in Peoria was significant.

Besides the nearby hotels, restaurants and shopping centers, the fractured spring training was hard on the Diamond Club, a nonprofit organization that operates the stadium in Peoria. Area charities benefit from the proceeds and, although Richardson wouldn’t be specific, he said the numbers were lower.

“People decided they weren’t going to come down for an abbreviated spring training,” he said. “This is very encouraging. Maybe a lot of the folks who didn’t make the trip will come down next year.”

Even though the Mariners ended up playing a full schedule in Arizona last spring, the final 10 games were thrown together and attendance was less than half of normal.

“We got double whammied when they didn’t go to Japan and played games when people didn’t know they were going to be playing,” Richardson said. “This year, thank goodness, we’ve got a full schedule. There’s a lot of anticipation.”

Mariners pitchers and catchers will report to Peoria on Feb. 20 and have their first workout the following day; position players will report Feb. 25 and work out the 26th.

Although the M’s have known for some time that they won’t open next season in Japan – the Yankees and Devil Rays are the most likely teams to do that – some late wrinkles have prevented them from releasing their regular-season schedule this week as they had hoped.

One change involves a once-intriguing scenario that apparently won’t take place because of a revision of the interleague schedule.

It now appears the return of Ken Griffey Jr. won’t happen because the Cincinnati Reds’ interleague series June 18, 19 and 20 has been shifted from Seattle to Cleveland. The Mariners are working with Major League Baseball on bringing another National League team to Seattle that weekend.

Peoria packages: Spring Training Tours again will offer travel packages to Peoria that include air travel, car rental, game tickets, hotel and a barbecue with Mariners manager Bob Melvin and selected players. Information is available at 1-800-892-7687.

Holiday decorations: Safeco Field again will host its “Field of Lights” holiday displays on Friday, Saturday and Sunday evenings through Dec. 28. The inside and outside of the ballpark will be decorated with more than a half-million lights, and events, kids activities and entertainment also are scheduled.

The opening ceremony will be at 4:25 p.m. Friday, when former Mariner Dave Valle will flip a switch to illuminate the ballpark.

Admission is $6 for adults and $4 for kids 12 and younger. Tickets are on sale at Mariners Team Stores, including the outlet at the Alderwood Mall, at Ticketmaster Ticket Centers and the stadium.