Opponent: Kansas City Royals
When: 7:05 p.m. today, 7:05 p.m. Friday, 1:05 p.m. Saturday (double-header), 1:05 p.m. Sunday.
Where: Safeco Field
TV: Fox Sports Net today and Friday, no TV Saturday, KSTW (channel 13) Sunday.
Radio: KOMO (1000 AM) all five games.
Pitchers: Today – Seattle left-hander Jamie Moyer (6-8, 4.66 earned run average) vs. left-hander Brian Anderson (2-11, 6.06). Friday – Right-hander Gil Meche (4-5, 5.49) vs. left-hander Zack Greinke (6-9, 4.40). Saturday Game 1 – Left-hander Bobby Madritsch (3-1, 2.84) vs. left-hander Darrell May (9-14, 5.52). Saturday Game 2 – both starters undetermined. Sunday – Right-hander Ryan Franklin (3-13, 5.01) vs. right-hander Jimmy Serrano (0-1, 5.66).
In the presence of fame
A dozen Mariners gathered behind home plate and watched the action in the batting cage Wednesday afternoon, a sure sign that someone special was at Safeco Field.
When those same players lined up with bats, balls and gloves to be autographed, it clearly wasn’t just another celebrity who was in their midst.
Eddie Vedder, lead singer in the rock group Pearl Jam, spent the afternoon with the Mariners along with guitarist Mike McCready and others affiliated with the band. They took their cuts during a private batting practice session, and Vedder stayed on the field shagging flies when the Mariners went through their pregame workouts.
“We’ve got a lot of guys here who are Pearl Jam fans,” Mariners manager Bob Melvin said. “I even got an autograph for my daughter.”
Mariners first baseman Scott Spiezio, who has his own heavy-metal group, Sandfrog, couldn’t stop smiling as he rubbed shoulders with his rock-and-roll idols.
“I’m just recruiting some new guys for my group,” Spiezio said. “I think they’ll work out OK.”
The appearance was arranged by Mariners strength coach Allen Wirtala, who is a friend of the band’s equipment manager and has gotten to know members of the group. Wirtala threw batting practice to Vedder and said he wasn’t nervous about hurting one of the biggest stars in music.
“I’ve only hit two people in eight years,” Wirtala said. “Of course, that happened after I’d worked out before batting practice, and I told Eddie that I’d worked out today just before I threw to him.”
Vedder, dressed in a full Mariners uniform, didn’t back away and hit a few balls out of the infield. Later, he chased balls in the outfield and didn’t leave the field until the Mariners went back to their clubhouse, about two hours after he suited up.
Motivation? With Vedder in center field, Spiezio hit several line drives to him during batting practice. Melvin definitely noticed.
“I know it’s something Speez is working on, to stay up the middle a little more,” Melvin said. “If we can put a cutout of Eddie out there all the time, that might work for him.”
The other Eddie: Melvin said injured closer Eddie Guardado, who had arthroscopic knee surgery Tuesday, was back on his feet Wednesday and walked to his first therapy appointment.
The next step is to get his left knee, which had a torn meniscus, strong enough so Guardado can work his torn rotator cuff back into shape. Guardado went on the disabled list Aug. 1 because of the injured shoulder and has opted to rehab it rather than have surgery.
Mateo getting closer: Relief pitcher Julio Mateo, on the DL with tendinitis in his right elbow, threw off flat ground Wednesday and may go on a minor league rehab soon. Melvin said Mateo could return to the team during their next homestand.
Chip shot: Ryan Moore, the Puyallup golfer who won the U.S. Amateur last weekend, threw out the ceremonial first pitch before Wednesday’s game. Mariners reliever Shigetoshi Hasegawa, who plays to a single-digit handicap, caught Moore’s throw.
Kirby Arnold, Herald Writer
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