M’s send Reed, Rivera to the minors

PEORIA, Ariz. – The toughest roster moves are always the last ones, and the Seattle Mariners made some wrenching decisions Wednesday.

Outfielder Jeremy Reed, who lost his starting center field job to a broken thumb last year, is now off the team after the M’s optioned him to Class AAA Tacoma.

Catcher Rene Rivera, a 23-year-old whose skills grew stale last year as the backup to Kenji Johjima, was optioned to Class AA West Tennessee, where he will get everyday playing time. The move leaves 35-year-old career minor leaguer Jamie Burke as leader in the clubhouse to back up Johjima, although the Mariners are known to be looking for a more experienced backup as other teams make their final cuts.

Two others, right-handed pitcher Sean Green and left-hander Eric O’Flaherty, were optioned to Tacoma and right-handed pitcher Aaron Small was re-assigned to the minor league camp.

“The bad side of this job is having to do this, especially this time of the spring,” manager Mike Hargrove said. “Jeremy’s was one of the tougher ones I’ve ever had to make. It was not fun, but we all felt it was the right thing to do.”

The moves left the Mariners with 33 players on their major league camp roster. They must be at 25 by opening day, and it will be interesting how they get to that number.

Four pitchers remain for two spots on the 12-man staff. If hard-throwing rookie Brandon Morrow makes the team – and there’s strong support for him by Hargrove and pitching coach Rafael Chaves – the final spot will go to either Jon Huber, Justin Lehr or Sean White.

White, a Mercer Island resident who played at the University of Washington, has pitched well all month and may have an edge because of his Rule 5 draft status. The Mariners, who selected him in that draft in December, must keep him on the 25-man roster all season or offer him back to the Atlanta Braves.

Of the position players, the last roster spot will come down to veteran infielder Rey Ordonez or young infielder/outfielder Mike Morse.

Ordonez retired after the 2004 season and was out of baseball the past two years, but played well defensively at spring training. Morse can play third base, first and shortstop, plus left and right field.

Reed became the victim of Ben Broussard’s versatility. Broussard, a left-handed hitter with power potential, got a considerable amount of his playing time in left and right field this month, batting .308 with three home runs and eight RBI. Utility player Willie Bloomquist, a right-handed hitter, also can play every infield and outfield position.

“The ability that Ben showed us to play both corner outfield positions, plus Willie being able to play the infield and the outfield, gave us have the ability to carry an extra infielder, which we think will help us,” Hargrove said.

Rivera spent all last season on the major league roster but his skills suffered because of it. He hit .152 in 99 at-bats and he struggled defensively during his rare starts.

He came to spring training as the most likely catcher to win the backup job, especially because he had experience with the pitching staff. However, the club decided not to repeat the mistake it made with Rivera last year, when the time on the bench set him back.

Lowe cleared to throw: Mark Lowe hasn’t thrown a baseball since last August, and he hasn’t been allowed to think about it seriously since he had elbow surgery in October.

This weekend, it all changes.

The Mariners’ hard-throwing reliever received medical clearance Wednesday to begin throwing.

“I’ve been waiting for this for six months,” he said. “Six long months.”

He had surgery on Oct. 6 to repair a chondral defect in his right elbow, and there were fears the injury could threaten his career. There’s still no assurance that Lowe will regain the 98 mph fastball that made him so effective, but a second surgery late last month to remove scar tissue allowed him to get greater flexibility in the elbow.

Dr. Lewis Yocum, who performed both operations, examined Lowe last weekend and gave him a positive report, and Mariners medical director Dr. Edward Khalfayan checked him Wednesday and concurred.

“We went through some dry-run stuff (performing the throwing motion without a ball) a couple of days ago and it felt pretty good,” Lowe said. “My back was a little sore, but my arm felt good.”

He will increase the intensity and distance of his throwing incrementally and, if all goes well, could be healthy enough for games in July.

“It’s pretty much a three-month process if everything goes as planned,” he said.

Short outing: Felix Hernandez was scheduled to pitch seven innings Wednesday in his final exhibition start before Monday’s opener. He lasted only five after stiffening up on the bench during a couple of long Mariners rallies.

He finished his work by throwing 18 pitches in the bullpen.

“I am 100 percent ready,” he said.

Of note: The Mariners played all of their regulars for the first time this year, and they produced 11 runs on 14 hits. Richie Sexson was 3-for-5 with a home run and two RBI, finishing the Arizona part of his exhibition season with a .212 average. Adrain Beltre went 4-for-5 and is hitting .385. After playing them nine innings Wednesday, Hargrove said the regulars would start tonight in San Francisco and probably get two at-bats each. DH Jose Vidro is the only regular who will remain in Arizona for today’s split-squad game against the Padres. Releiver George Sherrill gave up two hits in a scoreless inning, but Hargrove was satisfied, especially after Sherrill had to warm up quickly when Arthur Rhodes was ejected. Umpires warned both benches in the seventh inning Wednesday after a series of hit batters and brushback pitches.