On one end of the Mariners’ clubhouse Monday stood Miguel Olivo. At the other end was Freddy Garcia, the man the Mariners traded away Sunday.
Olivo, who arrived early in the afternoon and was dressed in Mariners workout clothes as Garcia chatted with his former teammates, was amused by the scene.
“I’m here and he’s still here,” Olivo said. “It’s funny.”
It wasn’t completely unexpected, even though the players had 72 hours to report their new teams.
As a position player, Olivo felt it was important to join the Mariners immediately. Garcia remained in Seattle another day because the White Sox were off Monday and he isn’t scheduled to pitch until Wednesday at Minnesota.
Mariners manager Bob Melvin said Olivo, who will start tonight’s game against the Texas Rangers, will split playing time with Dan Wilson, who has played in 59 of the 74 games.
“If we get someone who’s hot, we’ll play the hot hand because we’re still trying to win here,” Melvin said. “I talked to Dan today and he knows where he stands. And Miguel knows he’s here for a reason.”
Olivo, 25, played about twice a week for the White Sox, backing up Sandy Alomar Jr., and won’t quibble if he’s not an everyday player for the M’s.
“I just want to play baseball, I want to help my team win,” he said. “I’ll play every chance they give me.”
Thornton to start: Left-hander Matt Thornton, who pitched four scoreless innings of relief Sunday, will start Thursday’s game against the Rangers in Garcia’s rotation slot.
“He warranted it the way he threw the ball yesterday,” Melvin said. “The next time around, we’ll see how it goes.”
Thornton, making his major league debut, allowed three hits and a walk with one strikeout against the San Diego Padres.
The next move: It seems almost certain that Pat Borders will be sent to Class AAA Tacoma now that the Mariners have Olivo and Wilson sharing the catching chores.
“There’s probably a good chance when we make a move that he’ll be the guy,” Melvin said. “We really don’t need three catchers.”
It’s the replacement for Borders who could stir some intrigue.
The logical choice would be shortstop Ramon Santiago, who has been up and down twice with the Mariners and is accustomed to spot duty.
Nobody quits: Melvin bristled when a reporter asked if Sunday’s trade was a signal that the Mariners have “thrown in the towel” now that their star pitcher is gone.
“If we were throwing in the towel, then we’d have a bunch of kids playing and you’d see more moves than that one,” he said. “We still have the same group of veteran guys going out there who don’t know any other way but to go out there and compete.”
The suggestion also got a rise out of closer Eddie Guardado.
“Giving up? There’s 24 guys on this team who haven’t,” he said. “There’s too much of summer left to give up.”
Back in the cage: Left fielder Raul Ibanez, on the disable list since June 3 because of a strained hamstring, took a full round of batting practice with his teammates Monday.
The Mariners are hoping to activate Ibanez for the final series before the All-Star break, July 9-11 at Chicago.
Kirby Arnold, Herald Writer
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