Opponent: Texas Rangers
When: 6:05 p.m.
Where: Safeco Field
TV: KIRO (Channel 7)
Radio: KIRO (710 AM)
Pitchers: Seattle right-hander Denny Stark (1-1, 11.57 earned run average) vs. left-hander Doug Davis (11-9, 4.60).
Back in the swing: Just when it looked like nothing would prevent backup catcher Tom Lampkin from finishing the season as a .200 hitter, a most amazing thing happened.
Lampkin started hitting.
He had two hits Friday and is 8-for-18 in his last five games, raising his average from .203 to 225.
It’s a welcome influx of offense for a team that will need Lampkin’s contribution in the playoffs as a late-inning left-handed pinch-hitter. To Lampkin, it’s a relief.
“Just to finally get going again, it’s a relief,” he said. “I’m starting to see the ball better, and I think it comes with the amount of playing time I’ve been getting.”
Most of all, it has given Lampkin a newfound confidence. The timing couldn’t be better.
“It wouldn’t have been fun to be headed to the postseason with the confidence I had two or three weeks ago,” he said. “I was just questioning everything. Why am I going through this? Am I doing everything it takes to get out of it? What more can I do?”
It’s a predicament that can cause a slumping hitter to over-compensate and create even more problems for himself.
“I’m sure I went through a period of time when I did over-analyze things,” Lampkin said. “But sometimes even that can be good. It can be part of the process of finding out.”
Something to play for: Manager Lou Piniella believes one reason the Mariners have been so consistent this season is that they’ve always had a new goal to reach.
“The amazing thing about baseball is that you’re always grabbing for something,” he said. “After you win 115 games, you’ve got to try and win 116. After you win the first round of the playoffs, there’s the second round, and then there’s the World Series.
“I think that has kept us motivated.”
Sunday’s plan: Aaron Sele will start for the Mariners on Sunday, but who follows him to the mound in the final regular-season game may be determined by the Mariners’ place in history.
Piniella said he would like to rest his front-line relief pitchers, plus a few regular position players, but that might change if the Mariners have a chance to set or tie a record for victories in a season.
“It depends on whether the game means something or not,” he said. “We’re going to pitch all our short people (Friday and today). I’m not sure what we’ll do Sunday.”
Welcome back, Alex: The Seattle fans’ reception for Alex Rodriguez has been much more calm than what he faced his first two trips to Safeco Field this season.
Rodriguez faced a loud chorus of boos, complete with dollar bills fluttering through the air every time he came to bat, early this season. This week the boos and cheers have been mixed, and fans have kept their money in their pockets.
Kirby Arnold
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