PEORIA, Ariz. — Shigetoshi Hasegawa may be the most versatile pitcher in baseball, willing to work in any situation he’s needed.
There was one thing, however, he didn’t want to change over the winter.
"I wanted to come back to Seattle," the 35-year-old right-hander said. "The fans are awesome and my family likes Seattle and the schools there."
Hasegawa became an All-Star in 2003, pitching long, middle and setup relief, and filling in superbly at closer during a time when the Mariners’ mighty bullpen threatened to crumble because of injuries.
He became the glue that held the pen together, finishing with 16 saves and a 1.48 earned run average (including a 0.77 ERA before the All-Star break).
His immediate reward after the season was total uncertainty over where he’d pitch in 2004.
Hasegawa became a free agent and, when it became evident the team wouldn’t bring back other high-profile free agents like Arthur Rhodes and Mike Cameron, he knew there was a chance he could be gone just as easily.
"Look at Arthur," Hasegawa said. "He was awesome for four years, but they didn’t go with him. I knew it could happen to me too."
Rhodes signed with Oakland, but the Mariners replaced him with left-hander Eddie Guardado. Cameron signed with the New York Mets, but the M’s plugged that hole by signing Raul Ibanez and moving Randy Winn to center field.
Hasegawa? He filed for free agency, too, and was prepared to leave even though he badly wanted to return to Seattle.
"As an employee, we have no control," he said. "That’s why I became a free agent because you never know."
The Mariners knew.
Hasegawa gets left-handers out as well as he does righties, he loves the setup role but gladly will pitch wherever his manager wants him, and he does it effectively.
The Mariners made him one of just two of their free agents — catcher Pat Borders is the other — to return with the club. Hasegawa signed for $6.3 million the next two years and $2.825 million in 2006 if he makes 58 appearances in 2005, plus an additional $2.7 million in other incentives. Hasegawa made $1.8 million in 2003.
The Mariners believe he’s worth the investment because they can use him in so many ways.
"Shiggy is, in my opinion, the most versatile reliever in the game," Mariners manager Bob Melvin said. "He’s a guy who can come out with one out in the sixth and get you to the ninth inning. He’s a guy who we used as our second lefty last year. He can set up. He can close."
And he does all of those roles without complaint.
"I really don’t care what my role is," said Hasegawa, who will turn 36 on Aug. 1. "I can pitch whenever the manager wants to put me in. Sixth, seventh, eighth, ninth? That’s fine."
With the financial security of his new contract, all Hasegawa wants now is for the Mariners to win.
Sure, he’d like to make the All-Star team again, but that’s something he wants more for his family than himself.
"It was big for me, but for my son and my wife, we spent the whole time together at the All-Star Game," Hasegawa said. "We can’t spend that kind of time together a lot. That’s the only bad part about baseball, and I had a good time with my family.
"The All-Star game is for my family, and I want to do that again for them. The playoffs are different. That’s for me and the team."
Hasegawa believes the Mariners’ 2004 bullpen is equally as strong as last year’s, and maybe even better considering Kazuhiro Sasaki was hurt much of the season and Jeff Nelson and Rhodes had their health issues.
"Nobody can be perfect and last year we weren’t," Hasegawa said. "Kaz got hurt and Nellie got hurt and Arthur did a little bit. It was pretty tough. But this year, we’ve got eight guys competing for the bullpen and every one of them is the best bullpen guy in the American League. I don’t worry about the bullpen right now. I’ve just got to protect my job because everybody is so good."
Melvin wants to use Hasegawa in setup situations but knows he is flexible enough to pitch in any role.
"He doesn’t try to tailor what he does to a particular role," Melvin said. "He just goes out there and pitches to his strengths. It doesn’t matter to him what time of the game or what the situation is, he goes out there and gets big outs for us."
As well as Hasegawa performed at closer last year after Sasaki suffered broken ribs, he said he gets more revved up in the setup role.
"I think setup is more exciting," he said. "You might come in with nobody out and everybody on, and that doesn’t happen many times for a closer. The closer most of the time starts the ninth inning with nobody out and nobody on.
"In setup, if you get three men out you’re the big hero of the game."
Melvin knows how lucky he is to have a pitcher so capable of pitching three innings in the middle of the game or the final inning while protecting a one-run lead.
"It takes a special kind of guy to pitch the ninth inning, let alone in every role you ask of a guy," Melvin said. "He does that without hesitation. He’s got no prima donna in him at all. No excuses come out of him.
"He’s just, ‘Give me the ball and pitch me when you need to pitch me.’ "
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