PEORIA, Ariz. — The temperature was a cool 51 degrees at first pitch, but the bats for both the Seattle Mariners and San Diego Padres were sizzling.
The two teams — each playing their spring training opener — combined for 33 hits in Seattle’s 10-inning, 13-12 win.
The last of those hits was backup catcher Josh Bard’s bases-loaded single in the bottom of the 10th, the biggest of his three hits on the afternoon.
Bard’s heroics offset a five-RBI performance from Padres catcher Nick Hundley, who belted a grand slam in the fifth inning as part of a six-run rally. The Mariners lost a four-run lead but came back from two three-run deficits in the late innings.
Outfield prospect Carlos Peguero tied the score at 12 with a two-out, two-run home run in the bottom of the ninth, then preserved the tie by throwing out the Padres’ Mike Baxter at home plate trying to score from second base on a single in the top of the 10th.
Bard, a 32-year-old non-roster invitee and former Padre, hit .214 in 39 games for the Mariners last season. His game-winning single came off Padres reliever Samuel Deduno, who was claimed off waivers from Colorado on Feb. 1.
“That’s the best thing about playing games,” Mariners manager Eric Wedge said. “You can watch the guys on both sides of the baseball and watch and see how they react and respond to different opportunities or different situations.”
The Mariners batted around in the second inning, scoring five runs. Jack Wilson and Chone Figgins each drove in a pair of runs in the inning with two-out singles off Padres starter Tim Stauffer, who allowed five runs on six hits in 1 2-3 innings, and Mariners starter Erik Bedard threw a nine-pitch scoreless first inning.
“The ball was moving pretty good. I was just a little off location-wise,” Stauffer said.
Bedard, a left-hander who is coming back from left shoulder surgery that cost him all of 2010, struck out two.
“It’s not going to be like that every time, but it was fun that it went that way,” Bedard said. “It’s just good to be out there and put my feet on the mound and just throw.”
Hundley said he was trying to drive the ball into the middle of the field, and his work with hitting coach Randy Ready paid off on the grand slam.
“I don’t think I’ve ever driven in that many runs in a spring training game before, so it’s nice,” Hundley said. “It’s a nice start but there’s a long way to go.”
Notes: Veteran OF Jody Gerut, who spent all or parts of six seasons with five different major-league clubs before being invited to Mariners camp as a non-roster player this year, announced his retirement from playing Sunday. He cited a diminished will to compete and wanting more time with his family. Gerut, 33, appeared in 574 games in his major-league career that included stints with Cleveland (where he debuted in 2003), the Chicago Cubs, Pittsburgh, San Diego and Milwaukee. He finished with a career batting average of .262. … The Mariners announced the signings of pitchers Dan Cortes, Luke French, Shawn Kelley and Garrett Olson; C Adam Moore; IF Mike Carp and OFs Greg Halman and Michael Saunders to 2011 contracts.
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