PEORIA, Ariz. – On the day it became apparent the Seattle Mariners will have only one opening for a position player, Willie Bloomquist staked a solid claim to it.
Bloomquist continued to shake himself out of a poor spring training when he went 2-for-4 and played well at third base in the Seattle Mariners’ 4-1 loss to the Milwaukee Brewers.
Bloomquist, hitting .190 two days ago, is now batting .249 and seems to be a front-runner for what appears to be one berth on the bench on the opening day roster.
Manager Bob Melvin said earlier Saturday that the team almost certainly will begin the season with 12 pitchers, a reversal in his position earlier this month when he was leaning toward 11.
“It’s not for sure,” Melvin said. “But there’s a much better chance than what I was thinking a week ago.”
The Mariners must designated their 25-man season-opening roster Saturday night before their exhibition game at San Diego.
The luxury of 12 pitchers would give Melvin plenty of arms during a difficult opening stretch of the season, when the Mariners play 26 games in 27 days, including 20 in a row.
However, it also would mean only one of the four players competing for backup roles has a chance to make the team. Bloomquist is competing for that spot with Hiram Bocachica, Ramon Santiago and Eric Owens.
Melvin has said more than once that Bloomquist is likely to make the team because of his versatility. He can play all four infield positions, plus left field, and he runs well. He also has a year of experience with a backup job that requires him to stay sharp despite long periods on the bench.
Bocachica is batting .334 this month with a team-best three home runs. However, because he is not on the 40-man roster, the Mariners could send Bocachica to the minor leagues to start the season and call him up if needed. If they put him on the 25-man season-opening roster and then try to send him down, Bocachica would be exposed to the waiver process because he doesn’t have any minor league options left.
Melvin didn’t want to shed any more clues to the Mariners’ plan, even though it would make more sense to start with Bocachica in the minors.
“Nobody said I have any sense,” Melvin quipped.
Santiago has impressed everyone with his ability to play shortstop and would provide a quality backup to Rich Aurilia. However, there’s some thought that he would be better served playing every day at Class AAA Tacoma, where he would be a phone call away from Seattle if there’s a need.
Owens, hitting just .226 this month, is strictly an outfielder and would seem to be squeezed out by switch-hitting veteran Quinton McCracken.
While all the speculation has swirled around him, Bloomquist has gone about the business of pulling himself from a slow start and forgetting about the roster decisions.
“I try and keep my focus the same no matter what,” he said. “I can’t worry about what’s going on around me and who else is playing great. All I can worry about is getting myself ready for the season and doing what I can do to help this team win. I can’t control what they (the organization) are going to do.”
Besides getting two hits for the second straight game Saturday, Bloomquist made a diving stop of a ground ball near third base and threw out Ben Grieve.
Davis is in: Melvin said catcher Ben Davis would make the opening-day roster even though he continues to struggle at the plate.
There had been speculation early in camp that Davis’ poor hitting and work habits had irritated the Mariners to the point that they considered of starting him at Class AAA Tacoma.
With a week left in the exhibition season, Davis is batting .080 (2-for-25). Melvin emphasized that Davis is working to shorten his swing, especially left-handed, and he’s not overly concerned with the low average.
“For a guy who’s one of our 25, you do give guys some time (to get their swings in shape) in spring training. Some guys get it before other guys do,” Melvin said.
Melvin said early in spring training that he wanted Davis to improve as a hitter and earn the starting job at catcher, but it’s clear that Dan Wilson will begin the season as the starter.
“If Ben’s not being productive offensively, it’s pretty easy to write Dan’s name into the lineup,” Melvin said. “Even when Dan’s not swinging well, he brings so many intangibles behind the plate that don’t show up in the box score.”
Spiezio spasms: Third baseman Scott Spiezio left Saturday’s game after one at-bat when he felt pain in his back while running to first base.
“Swinging a bat doesn’t bother me and throwing doesn’t bother me, but running … ” Spiezio said. “The trainers think maybe one of the vertebrae rotated out of place a little bit.”
Melvin speculated that Spiezio wore himself down with all the extra ground balls he has fielded at third base at spring training. He is returning to third for the first time since his minor league days and has fielded more grounders in morning workouts than perhaps any other Mariner.
“I’ve been feeling something for about four days. It’s not a big deal but it’s something I’ve got to get out of there,” Spiezio said. “I’ve had spasms before, but usually when I get one in a game, the adrenaline takes over and I play with it. Today, I definitely noticed it when I ran to first.”
Melvin said Spiezio wouldn’t play today but may return to the lineup Monday.
Slated for surgery: Catcher Ryan Christianson, a former first-round draft who was working his way back to health after shoulder surgery, will have another operation this week.
He is scheduled to have a bone spur removed from his right elbow on Tuesday.
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