Mariners Update

“I feel like a failure, yeah,” he said Saturday. “I’m a .280 hitter for my career and I’m in the low .230s here. I’m doing terrible, I’m not playing much and there’s not much I can do except root on the other guys.”

Martin rarely talks about it, for fear of distracting from the team’s situation.

“We’re fighting for a spot in the postseason. I don’t blame anyone – Lou (Piniella) has six guys to rotate in the outfield. If I were him, I’d do the same thing. He’s playing the guys that got him this far.

“I’m the new guy, and I didn’t do much to help. The funny thing is, my highlights here have all been defensive – and guys said I couldn’t catch a cold when I got here.”

A regular player most of his career, Martin says he’s had trouble adjusting to playing irregularly.

“Again, it’s nobody’s fault. It’s an adjustment I haven’t made yet,” he said. “It’s like if I play every fourth day, I feel good about the third at-bat. Some guys, like Stan Javier, have learned to play well in that role. I haven’t yet.

“In San Diego, I felt like one of the go-to guys. If we needed a rally, I could get one started.

“Here, I’m happy for the team. I’m just not too happy about what I’m doing.”

In 41 games, 131 at-bats with Seattle, Martin is batting .237 with four home runs, nine RBI and four stolen bases. His contract extends through next season.

“It’s very strange. On the one hand, I want to see this team win. On the other hand, when I talk to my friends about playing, I talk about next year,” Martin said. “I don’t say much in here because the last thing I want to do is be a negative distraction. I mean, who cares?”

Last week, Martin’s son asked him why he wasn’t playing, any more.

“He wanted to know if I was hurt,” Martin said. “Sometimes I want to scream, ‘I can play this game!’ But it’s secondary right now to what the team is going after. I can wait. It’s frustrating, but it’s not like I’m angry at anyone. Lou’s been fair with me. The guys have been great to me.

“It’s just one of those things that has caused me a few sleepless nights. I want to play.”

Apparently the confusion came when Moyer left his Thursday start and asked trainer Rick Griffin to do a little extra work on his left shoulder during post-game rubdowns. Piniella believed Moyer had complained of weakness and somehow that translated to discomfort and much concern in the media.

“I pitched badly,” Moyer said. “But I wasn’t hurt.”