Before anyone asked a question, Mariners manager John McLaren had a point to make with reporters Sunday.
Struggling first baseman Richie Sexson is sitting, McLaren said, because Miguel Cairo is a better fit for the offense right now. He said Sexson hasn’t been banished forever to the bench or, according to one rumor McLaren has heard, soon will become an ex-Mariner.
“It’s not about Richie, it’s about Miguel,” McLaren said. “To be honest, he’s energized us. He’s given us great defense, he’s given us a different look, some speed, he’s a contact hitter. And we’ve played pretty good. In the situation we’re in, I’m not going to change it. We’re starting to play good.”
The Mariners are 3-2 in the games Cairo has started. He went 0-for-3 with a sacrifice bunt Sunday and is batting .208. Sexson is batting .200 with nine home runs and 21 RBI.
“I think we’re trying to make this story into something it’s not,” McLaren said. “Richie is our first baseman but we’ve got a hot hand going and I’m not going to change it right now.”
McLaren concedes it’s not an easy situation for him or Sexson.
“What always will be No. 1 is what’s best for the team,” McLaren said. “I believe in Richie. He’s working hard behind the scenes and I’m sure he’s anxious to get back out there. He can’t do anything sitting on the bench. I told him the reasons why he’s not out there.”
McLaren says Cairo better fits his attempt to play a small-ball style of offense.
“I like to put the game in motion,” McLaren said. “I like guys running, putting pressure on the defense. But I like power, too. When you’ve got neither one of them going, it’s like watching paint dry. It looks sluggish and it looks boring.
“This is not a knock at Richie. I’m tipping my cap to Miguel all the way.”
Batista ailing again: Miguel Batista seemed to have settled in after allowing two runs and three hits in the first three innings, then he told pitching coach Mel Stottlemyre his right groin was hurting after the Tigers loaded the bases in the sixth.
Batista, who suffered a groin injury early this season, said it’s not serious. The Mariners weren’t sure if he will miss his next start.
“We saw him throw a pitch and then I saw him limping a little bit,” McLaren said. “Mel went out to check on him and that’s when he said it was bothering him.”
Of note: McLaren said Felix Hernandez should be OK to make his next start, even though he left Saturday’s game after seven innings because his right calf fatigued. Hernandez had injured the calf early last month. … McLaren wasn’t upset that Yuniesky Betancourt was thrown out at third base for the second out in the sixth inning, even though he was trying to advance an extra base on Ichiro Suzuki’s single to left field. “It wasn’t the first out of the inning, so I didn’t have a problem with it,” McLaren said. “We want to be aggressive and they made the play on us.” … A video review of Carlos Silva’s last start, when the Tigers scored seven runs in the first inning Friday, showed he might be tipping his pitches, but “it’s nothing concrete,” McLaren said. … Mariners scouting supervisors held their first day of meetings Sunday at Safeco Field as they finalize their strategy for the annual amateur draft, which begins Thursday. The scouting and player development departments will meet every day until the draft.
Kirby Arnold, Herald writer
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