Reliever Jeff Nelson signs on for his third tour with M’s

SEATTLE – Forget the handshakes. Jeff Nelson needed a hug.

On the day he re-signed with the Seattle Mariners, Nelson returned to CEO Howard Lincoln’s office at Safeco Field on Monday to once-and-hopefully-forever patch any bad feelings from their 2003 separation.

“I said, the heck with these handshakes,” Nelson said. “I gave him a hug and told him that it meant a lot to be back here.”

Nelson signed a minor-league contract with an invitation to spring training, bringing him back to the organization for the third time in his 13-year major league career.

After 2003, it didn’t seem possible.

Nelson publicly criticized the front office when the Mariners didn’t make a significant deal before the July 31 trade deadline. Within days, the Mariners traded him to the New York Yankees in exchange for Armando Benitez.

He finished that season with the Yankees and played part of last year with the Texas Rangers before having knee and elbow surgery in May.

Nelson had some interest this winter from other teams, the Mets and Phillies in particular, but nobody seemed willing to go beyond a minor-league contract. His agent, Ron Shapiro, contacted the Mariners early in the offseason but didn’t think there was enough interest to pursue a deal.

Nelson, who won four World Series rings with the Yankees, had all but decided to retire. He and his family, wife Collette and their four daughters, live in Issaquah and he didn’t want to leave them again for long periods of time to play in another city.

“I didn’t care for the idea of leaving my family,” he said. “I wasn’t very motivated to play baseball.”

He kept that possibility alive, however, by getting his arm in shape. Since the New Year, he played catch frequently with another former Mariners pitcher, Aaron Sele.

Sele, who had just signed a minor-league contract with the M’s, told Nelson he should think about returning to the team, too.

“I said I would love to come back, don’t know if that would ever be a possibility,” Nelson said.

Sele called Mariners pitching coach Bryan Price, who thought it was a great idea. Price then called the front office and pitched his support.

“It seemed to make so much sense,” Price said. “He’s such an outstanding isolation right-hander. If you can isolate him on a right-handed hitter, you always feel you’ve got the edge. Last year’s club, we weren’t able to isolate as well as we had in the past, and we’re still in that position.”

With Nelson apparently healthy and obviously willing to return to the Mariners, the sides got together and, in the end, Nelson negotiated his own deal.

Of course, the Mariners executives whose ears burned after Nelson’s comments in 2003 had to OK his return. He met over the weekend with general manager Bill Bavasi, who wasn’t here in 2003, and assistant GM Lee Pelekoudas, who was. He met Sunday with team president Chuck Armstrong and, Monday, with CEO Lincoln.

“For me to continue in baseball, it was important to mend the fences that were broken in August of 2003,” Nelson said. “I told them after the year and a half (since the trade to New York), it had weighed heavy on my heart and in my mind. I grew up in this organization, I went through the downs and the ups in this organization and built some very strong relationships in this organization.”

The question now is simple. Can Nelson, who had bone chips removed from his elbow and had the meniscus repaired in his left knee, return to the form that made him one of baseball’s best right-handed setup relievers?

“He signed a Triple-A contract and if his arm’s not up to the task, then so be it,” Price said. “But I don’t know why he can’t come back and throw the ball equally effectively. We’re not looking at him to throw two to three innings. He’s a guy who’ll face between one and four hitters.”

Nelson said his arm and knee are fine, and his heart is feeling good again after solving the differences he’s had with the front office the past 1 1/2 years.

“I threw at the stadium for the first time today, and it brought back a lot of good memories,” he said. “I’m looking forward to helping this team get back to its winnings ways.”