M’s play ‘three-man lift’

PEORIA, Ariz. – It’s one of the oldest pranks in the baseball book, yet every year an unsuspecting rookie experiences it for the first time.

Make that two Mariners rookies and a rookie trainer, who learned Saturday the meaning of the “three-man lift.”

It’s a stunt that typically begins with a veteran or two arguing over who is stronger. Then one will bet the other that he can lift three people at once.

Word will circulate through the clubhouse, wagers collected and three “volunteers” gathered to provide the dead weight to be lifted.

Players will gather ‘round and the instigator – in this case Mariners closer and team pundit Eddie Guardado – will begin to prove his point.

Saturday, on a grassy area outside the Mariners’ clubhouse, the scene played out as it has for decades in baseball. And young pitcher Felix Hernandez, catcher Rene Rivera and Japanese trainer Ryo Tahara learned that there really isn’t much lifting in the “three-man lift.”

Guardado had the three lie on their backs next to each other and lock their arms tightly. Then, as he prepared to lift three bodies at once…

Someone dumped a cooler filled with … well … a mixture of unpleasantness.

“Catsup, mustard, mayonnaise and some things from the lunch room,” Guardado said. “We got a few things from the trainer’s room, and there was some other ‘stuff’ we added to it, too.”

Guardado wouldn’t reveal what “stuff” it was, but the combination was a putrid-smelling stew that soon was being dumped onto his victims.

“I’ve been doing this for years,” Guardado cackled later. “But this was a good one.”

Manager Mike Hargrove was as amazed as he was amused. He’d not only seen the trick performed numerous times in his playing and managing career, he’d orchestrated it.

“They’ve been doing that since Babe Ruth was a player, and they always get somebody with it,” Hargrove said. “That poor trainer. He smelled like a garbage can.”

More hijinx: Allen Turner, who handles bullpen catching duties and interprets for Japanese players, had his ballcap pulled a little lower on his head Saturday afternoon.

Guardado – who else? – took some electric shears to Turner’s dark hair and turned it into something only a landscape artist might love (or hate). Turner’s head was shaved to the skin, except for a small patch in front and a star-shaped design on the top.

Guardado has a good side, though. He took up a collection from his teammates and handed $1,200 to Turner, who planned to use some of it to get the rest of his head shaved.

Buckling down: Hargrove says this is the time when players who have been struggling to settle into a rhythm need to produce.

Left-handed pitcher Matt Thornton, hoping to make the team as a reliever, is one player who needs to turn around his slow start. Thornton gave up four hits, two walks and a run in two innings Saturday.

“In both innings he was in trouble,” Hargrove said. “But again, in one inning he had the bases loaded and one out and got out of it without a run being scored. That’s good to see.

“You have to take into account what kind of pressure these guys are under. That’s why early on you really have to be careful about making judgments and forming opinions. But the time for that is gone. From here on out, they need to step it up because decisions and opinions are starting to be made.”

Injury update: Injured pitchers Guardado and Joel Pineiro threw lightly Saturday in hopes of recovering by the season opener.

Guardado (strained right hamstring) threw a baseball against the training room wall in an effort to retain his throwing mechanics. Pineiro (right shoulder soreness) played catch and said he was planning to throw off the bullpen mound today.

Guardado said he feels pain in his right leg, especially when he takes a stride and plants his right leg. The Mariners say he could miss anywhere from seven days to three weeks.

“I’m going to play catch tomorrow and then we’ll see how I feel,” Guardado said, although the Mariners think he might be a little ambitious.

“I know Eddie would like to start throwing, but Dr. (Larry) Pedegana (the team physician) is going to look at him tomorrow first,” trainer Rick Griffin said.

Pineiro threw for eight minutes at 90 feet. He said he still feels stiffness in the shoulder, but he’s not nervous about it if he does test it on the mound today.

“Everybody has been telling me it’s just soreness in the muscle and we’re being cautious because it’s so early,” Pineiro said. “You have the same thing during the season when you’re strong and have been pitching for a while.”

Outfielder Chris Snelling, who had arthroscopic surgery on his left knee 11 day ago, is making impressive progress, Griffin said.

“He did some easy agility drills today. He’s 10 days past the surgery and he’s doing great,” said Griffin, who wouldn’t estimate when Snelling would be cleared for his favorite activity, swinging a bat. “We’re taking it one activity at a time and seeing how he progresses, but he’s getting close.”

Of note: Catcher Miguel Olivo, whose play on defense is being watched carefully after his problems last season, committed his first passed ball of spring training in the fifth inning Saturday, although there was some dispute over the call. The pitch appeared to have hit Hank Blalock’s bat, but plate umpire Travis Reininger didn’t call it a foul ball, forcing the official scorer to rule it a passed ball. “I was steamed at that because he swung at the pitch,” Hargrove said. … Saturday’s game brought the Mariners together with one of their old teammates. Greg Colbrunn, who spent must of the 2003 season on the disabled list with the M’s, is with the Rangers and was their DH Saturday. …A group of bicyclists arrived in Peoria on Saturday, eight days after they departed from Safeco Field on a ride to raise money for cancer research.