7:15 p.m. UPDATE: The Mariners have confirmed the item below on pitcher Brian Sweeney. He’s in uniform tonight for the Tacoma Rainiers at Salt Lake.
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I always try to take a break from the typing before a Mariners game and soak in the wonder of being able to work in a major league ballpark.
Usually, I do it about the time the Mariners’ relief pitchers high-five their teammates and begin their walk across the field toward the bullpen. More times than not, the relievers have marched in a fairly straight line.
Backward.
Yep, they often would back their way across the field until they reached the door to the bullpen, then disappeared into their haven for the night. Why backward? What deep meaning could there be?
“No reason, except that we’re idiots,” Mark Lowe said.
Sitting nearby, Sean White shook his head in agreement. “That’s right,” he said. “Idiots.”
So there you have it. I was all prepared for some deep message about the relievers never turning their backs on their teammates, or always facing the music, or who knows what.
Not so sure about the idiot part, but those guys are a treat to watch.
A few pregame notes after driving to the ballpark this afternoon against the flow of soccer traffic (Was it especially cold at Qwest Field today? Everyone was wearing a scarf. Also, I tried to high-five some fans after the Sounders’ big victory, but I guess soccer fans don’t use their hands.):
Tonight’s lineups:
TIGERS
Jackson, center field
Raburn, right field
Ordonez, DH
Cabrerra, first base
Guillen, left field
Inge, third base
Sizemore, second base
Laird or Avila, catcher (Laird has a sore back)
Everett, shortstop
Right-hander Justin Verlander, starting pitche
MARINERS
Suzuki, right field
Figgins, second base
Gutierrez, center field
Lopez, third base
Griffey, DH
Bradley, left field
Kotchman, first base
Moore, catcher
Wilson, shortstop
Left-hander Ryan Rowland-Smith, starting pitcher
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