Mariners option Dickey to Tacoma

Published 11:25 pm Saturday, March 29, 2008

The Seattle Mariners essentially set their opening day roster on Saturday, and it will include spring star Mike Morse and speedy Charlton Jimerson as the last two position players to make the team.

The Mariners’ roster became clear after they traded minor league catcher Jair Fernandez to Minnesota on Saturday in exchange for the Twins rejecting Seattle’s offer to return Rule 5 draftee R.A. Dickey.

Seattle then optioned Dickey to Class AAA Tacoma in a surprising move. The knuckleballer and former No. 1 draft choice of Texas, who hasn’t pitched in the major leagues in 23 months, was a spring revelation with a 2.25 ERA, only one home run allowed in 20 innings and the versatility to pitch in a variety of roles.

Also Saturday, the Mariners reassigned five non-roster invitees to their minor league camp: left-hander Arthur Rhodes, who is still recovering from elbow surgery last May and might be ready soon, veteran infielder and pinch-hitting specialist Greg Norton, former Atlanta Braves closer Chris Reitsma, right-hander Roy Corcoran and infielder Tug Hulett.

Late Friday night, Seattle optioned outfielder Jeremy Reed to Tacoma and right-handed reliever Brandon Morrow to Class AA West Tennessee.

“We are in better shape than we were last year. And we have more options in the bullpen,” Mariners manager John McLaren said Saturday morning.

Morse, who entered Saturday batting .508 this spring and is out of options, and Jimerson will be the reserve outfielders following Reed’s demotion. Reed was Seattle’s starting center fielder two years ago but has been injured and mostly at Tacoma since. He is left-handed, and McLaren preferred a right-handed reserve behind a starting outfield full of lefties.

Morrow, the fifth overall draft choice in 2006 who starred in Seattle’s bullpen as a rookie last season, was supposed to be the Mariners’ primary setup man. But he came down with soreness in his pitching shoulder earlier this month. He spent the winter in Venezuela as a starter, in case Seattle needed him in its rotation.

Morrow has struggled in two appearances this week following a 13-day hiatus from pitching in a game.

The Mariners sent the 23-year-old to West Tennessee instead of Tacoma so he can pitch in warmer weather next month. They expect to have him back in the bullpen soon.

Cubs 4, Mariners 2: At Las Vegas, Ryan Dempster spent the spring proving himself as a starter again, and his final tuneup for the Chicago Cubs was a success.

The right-hander allowed one run and six hits in four innings Saturday, sending the Chicago Cubs to a 4-2 victory over the Seattle Mariners in the exhibition finale for both teams.

Dempster was a starter with Florida and Cincinnati before spending almost all of the past four seasons in the Cubs’ bullpen. He saved 85 games from 2005-07.

He will make his first regular-season start of 2008 against the Milwaukee Brewers in Chicago on Thursday.

Mariners starter Jarrod Washburn also got ready, pitching five innings. He gave up three runs — two earned — and seven hits while striking out two. He is slated to start Seattle’s fourth game, at Baltimore on Friday.

The Mariners, who finished exhibition play 13-16-3, open the season Monday against Texas in Seattle. They will send Erik Bedard to the mound against the Rangers’ Kevin Millwood.

Reed Johnson led off the game with a homer off Washburn to left field on the second pitch. Ronny Cedeno (3-for-4) and Henry Blanco each had an RBI single for the Cubs (15-15-2) in the fourth inning. Richie Sexson hit an RBI single for Seattle in the third.

Kerry Wood pitched a scoreless ninth for his second save.

Carlos Zambrano will start the season opener Monday for Chicago against Milwaukee’s Ben Sheets. The Cubs, looking for their first World Series title in 100 years, will try to repeat as NL Central champions.

“This is going to be no picnic for us,” manager Lou Piniella said. “We like our team, but we’re going to have to go out and play.”

The Cubs start the season in cold-weather cities for the entire month of April, including a six-game homestand and then a road trip to Pittsburgh and Philadelphia.

Chicago placed reliever Scott Eyre, who has a sore left elbow, on the 15-day disabled list, retroactive to March 23.

“I don’t think he’ll be out too long,” Piniella said.