SF Giants Press Clips Sunday, March 19, 2017

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1 SF Giants Press Clips Sunday, March 19, 2017 San Francisco Chronicle U.S. advance means Posey, Crawford to miss more Giants camp Henry Schulman SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. Buster Posey and Brandon Crawford still have more work to do for the red, white and blue. Mark Melancon and Jeff Samardzija could join them. But Johnny Cueto is staying put. The Americans eliminated the Dominicans in the World Baseball Classic 6-3 on Saturday night and will play Japan in a semifinal game at Dodger Stadium on Tuesday night. With a win, the United States will appear in its first WBC championship game Wednesday night against the winner of Monday s game between Puerto Rico and the Netherlands, which is managed by Giants hitting coach Hensley Meulens. Posey and Crawford have been with the U.S team from the outset. Melancon and Samardzija have been approved to join them at Dodger Stadium. It is not clear if they will go. Melancon s selecion is more likely. Samardzija is scheduled to start against the Brewers in Scottsdale on Sunday. Giants pitching coach Dave Righetti had said Saturday morning he expected Dominican general manager Moises Alou to ask Cueto to come to Los Angeles to pitch in Wednesday s WBC championship game in case the team got that far. 1

2 Cueto had expressed reluctance to go after missing the first three weeks of camp, but was expected to accept Alou s invitation. Now, he will continue his preparation for the season with the Giants and face the White Sox in Glendale, Ariz. on Monday. The Dominicans scored twice in the first inning at Petco Park on Saturday after a Brandon Crawford error. Crawford later threw out Nelson Cruz at home and singled with two outs ahead of a Giancarlo Stanton homer that broke a 2-2 tie. Crawford also fielded Manny Machado s grounder and threw to first for the final out. Posey did not play Saturday after catching all of Friday night s loss to Puerto Rico. San Francisco Chronicle Giants reliever Smith still on track for Opening Day Henry Schulman PEORIA, Ariz. In the competition to become Mark Melancon s principal setup man, do not sleep on left-hander Will Smith. Smith largely has been forgotten this spring because of an elbow injury, but he debuted with a scoreless inning against the Rockies on Friday night and could challenge Derek Law and Hunter Strickland for eighth-inning supremacy. He made a great impression after his midseason acquisition from Milwaukee and finished 2016 with 18 consecutive scoreless outings. Smith figures to have five more outings before Opening Day and believes he will be ready. He was happy not only to pitch with no pain in his elbow, or the knee that he freakishly injured last spring while removing a shoe, but also to rise Saturday feeling just as good. The more Smith pitches, the more he can prove to a staff that has not seen him for a full season that he deserves more late-inning responsibility. 2

3 You always want to have a good spring anyway, just confidence-wise, going into the season. After being here for two months last year, to be able to show the coaching staff what I can do a little bit more, sure, why not? Parker impresses: Jarrett Parker has done all he can to secure the left-field job, at least against right-handed pitchers. He singled and hit his fourth homer in Saturday s 6-5 loss to Seattle. Parker held up on a 2-2 Hisashi Iwakuma slider in the dirt, fought off two pitches and then hammered a ball onto the berm near the batter s eye. Moreover, manager Bruce Bochy likes the way Parker has played in left field. He s getting good jumps and he s focused, Bochy said. He s throwing out some good at-bats. His discipline has improved so much. Even though he s shortened up, he hasn t sacrificed power. He needed to mature as a hitter and he s doing it. Thrill is here: Will Clark arrived for his annual camp visit Friday, later than usual because he underwent hip-replacement surgery in January. Clark works as a part-time instructor during the season, mostly seeing Double-A Richmond, Va., and low Class A Augusta, Ga., because he can get there fairly easily from his home in Baton Rouge, La. The former Giant had resisted full-time coaching work because he wanted to be home to help raise his son, Trey, who is autistic. But Trey is now grown and Clark expanded his role last year at general manager Bobby Evans behest, seeing the minor leaguers every other week and occasionally coming to San Francisco to work with big leaguers. Briefly: Third baseman Jae-gyun Hwang was scratched as a precaution and is being watched for concussion symptoms after a bad hop hit him in the head as he took grounders.... Reliever Cory Gearrin, who had a fingernail issue, is ready to pitch again. Second baseman Joe Panik, the longest-tenured Giant not yet eligible for arbitration, signed a $600,000 contract for Henry Schulman is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Mariners 6, Giants 5 3

4 Notable: Matt Moore pitched shutout ball for the second time in three starts, this time lasting five innings, allowing two hits and striking out four. He did not allow a hit until Guillermo Heredia s one-out single in the fifth.... Denard Span, who has struggled all spring, went 2-for-4 with an infield hit and RBI triple.... Chris Marrero hit his team-leading fifth homer, counting his walk-off in the game against Puerto Rico, which does not appear in the stats. Quotable: If I were betting (on us), I d rather have another hitter instead of me. Moore, who has not gotten a plate appearance this spring Sunday s game: Giants vs. Brewers in Maryvale, Ariz., 1:05 p.m. TV/Radio: CSNBA/680 San Jose Mercury News Giants Notes Andrew Baggarly PEORIA, Ariz. Jarrett Parker connected on a home run Saturday that involved little to no doubt. The left field competition is looking that way, too. Parker was 2 for 4 in the Giants 6-5 exhibition road loss to the Seattle Mariners. He s hitting.333 this spring. His fourth home run was a backspun shot that carried over the center field fence, and it didn t even sound that good off the bat. The best part, as Giants manager Bruce Bochy saw it: Parker connected with two strikes, after laying off some tough pitches. And you, know, what I like is that he s been playing well on defense, too, Bochy said. He s getting good jumps on the ball. He looks very focused out there, and he s throwing out some good at-bats. Parker s seven walks lead the team as well. His discipline has improved so much, Bochy said. Even though he s shortened up, he s not sacrificing power. It s maturing as a hitter, and he s doing that. Coming into this spring, he knew what was at stake and he s doing the job. 4

5 Jae-gyun Hwang was supposed to start at designated hitter but the Giants scratched him as a precaution because he took a bad-hop ground ball off his head during early infield practice back at Scottsdale Stadium. Bochy said Hwang underwent tests and was fine other than a contusion. But we decided to keep him back instead of bringing him out here and he gets dizzy or something, Bochy said. He says he s fine but you never know. These things can show up later. Catcher Tim Federowicz was the beneficiary of some extra at-bats as the DH and went 1 for 3 with a double. Although the late signing of Nick Hundley almost certainly pushes Federowicz to Triple-A, the former Dodger and Cub is making an impression while hitting.368 this spring. He has hit doubles in five consecutive games. I like him, Bochy said. He s making a little noise in this camp. Left-hander Matt Moore matched the 90-degree heat with his best fastball of the spring in five shutout innings. He didn t allow a hit until the fifth and he struck out four while walking one. Moore said he s looking forward to hitting in his next start, and he fancied himself pretty good with the bat at Moriarty High School in New Mexico. He played first base as an upperclassman, but there was no chance he d start there as a freshman. That s because team already had a slugging senior by name of Kyle Blanks. The Giants reassigned Blanks to minor league camp earlier in the week. Chris Marrero hit a solo home run, his team-leading fifth of the spring if you include his walk-off shot to beat Puerto Rico s WBC team in a March 8 exhibition. Puerto Rico is 6-0 in the tournament. Maybe Team USA should ve picked up Marrero as a ringer. Denard Span went 2 for 4 with a triple and raised his average to.143. Gordon Beckham, not to be forgotten in a crowded backup infield competition, hit a double and made two impressive plays: a running catch of a pop-up in left field, and a lunging snag of a line drive. Right-hander David Hernandez, who is hoping to pitch his way into a bullpen role, allowed three runs and has a 5.79 ERA this spring. At this rate, it probably takes an injury for Hernandez to make the club. Left-hander Will Smith (elbow inflammation) said he came out of Friday s spring debut with no issues, and was ready for another appearance. I was just excited to be out there, really, Smith said. I was tired of watching everybody else play. 5

6 San Jose Mercury News No green rookie: Giants 3B Jae-gyun Hwang shows he belongs on and off the field Andrew Baggarly SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. Jae-gyun Hwang stood on a chair, reached down a large cardboard box from the shelf above his locker and opened its dog-eared flaps to reveal a bounty. Most players use that high shelf to store their bats. Hwang uses it to store an impressive selection of Korean snack treats. Choco Pies are a national treasure, after all, and there are some varieties that you just cannot find in the U.S. Oh, I asked him about those, outfielder Mac Williamson said with a laugh. What s the secret? Was he bringing those in to sabotage other people so he could get a spot on the roster? Obviously not. Baseball is not wrestling. You can t be disqualified for not making weight. But in a sense, Hwang is using his box of treats to get in good. He brought them to offer to his new teammates. It s one of several small, thoughtful gestures as Hwang seeks to gain acceptance after signing a minor league contract with the Giants following a successful career in the Korean Baseball Organization. He certainly appears to belong on the field. He has played a solid third base and is batting.321 with three home runs in 28 at-bats despite facing pitchers he is seeing for the first time. And several Giants players have remarked on Hwang s confident yet mirthful personality as a sign that he knows he belongs in the clubhouse, too. He is not a green rookie. Well, except for Thursday. He strode into the trainer s room on St. Patrick s Day wearing a green plastic bowler, green Irish-themed pajama pants and a green Peter Pan T-shirt with, So fly I Neverland printed across the chest. Call it a case of self-inflicted rookie hazing. Hwang heard that people wore green on March 17, so he went to Target and picked out his ensemble. I loved it, said Williamson, who wasted no time snapping a picture and posting it to Instagram. He s done a great job here. It s amazing at how quickly he learned the language. He tries really hard to pick up new stuff every day and he s trying hard to be a part of the team. It s really cool. He fits in really well already. He brings a lot of positive energy. He s always encouraging the guys and always has a smile on his face. He s a guy who comes in every day and people are glad to see him. And obviously, he s having a good spring. 6

7 The Giants have done their part to make Hwang feel comfortable amid his new surroundings. He was a bit more reserved in the first week or two of camp, leaning on interpreter Mark Kim as he learned the ropes. Then outfielder Jarrett Parker and catcher Trevor Brown approached him and invited him to dinner. We were talking about it, and if we were going overseas and couldn t communicate with a lot of these guys, I would hope that someone would reach out to me and want to go meet us and have dinner, said Brown, who is sharing an apartment with Parker this spring. I feel like that would be a tough spot to go somewhere new and not be able to talk to anybody. For myself, it would be tough to walk to random people and invite myself to dinner with them. So Parker took it upon himself and he went up and asked them if they would like to do that. While the Giants clubhouse has a reputation as a welcoming place, full of positive and upbeat personalities such as Buster Posey and Hunter Pence, there might not be anyone in the room who is more intellectually curious than Parker. He spent an offseason backpacking in Europe and another living in Manhattan. His girlfriend studies chimpanzees in Africa. And besides, Parker loves Korean food. I just wanted to make him feel welcome and help him out a little bit, Parker said. And I like to travel and get out of my comfort zone and get outside my box. So it s cool to meet someone from a completely different culture and hear a different perspective, both in life and baseball. They set up an edible exchange of cultures. One night, Hwang and Kim hosted them at a Korean restaurant that included the full Banchan service (imagine the table crammed with two dozen small bowls of dishes) plus eight plates of grilled meat. Hwang told them it was disrespectful to leave any food uneaten. Brown and Parker weren t sure if it was a joke, but they took no chances at breaking decorum. I was thinking, `No way, Brown said. We crushed it all, Parker said. Later in the week, when their stomachs returned to normal, Parker and Brown took Hwang and Kim to Culinary Dropout, a hip restaurant in Old Town Scottsdale with popular menu items such as pretzel bites, fried chicken and cheesy macaroni. What did they order? We had the Korean style ribeye, Brown said. Hey. It s one of the best things on their menu. While Hwang, 29, remains a longshot for a place on the Giants opening-day roster, he has done nothing to take himself out of consideration. He has indicated he is open to beginning at Triple- 7

8 A Sacramento, and by making a solid impression this spring, he ll give the Giants no hesitation to call him up later this season. Oh, he s opened eyes, Giants manager Bruce Bochy said. You know, you get somebody from Korea and you can look at video and look at reports but until you see him first hand, you don t get to appreciate the player. We re seeing it first hand now, and he s a solid player. He s got good instincts. He s got a good feel for the game. When we go over fundamentals, he gets it right away. He s not somebody we ve got to spend extra time on. He went to first base and looked comfortable over there. He s a ballplayer. Hwang was in a rare bit of discomfort on Saturday, though. The Giants scratched him from the lineup at Peoria because he got struck in the face by a bad-hop grounder during morning infield drills. Bochy said Hwang reported feeling fine, but the club didn t want to take any chances playing him on a hot day in a road park. Once he s cleared to return, Hwang will play a bit more in left field as he tries to prove his versatility. That could be important even at Sacramento, since top prospect Christian Arroyo is expected to start often at third base. But Hwang doesn t have to prove that he belongs. He s already done that. Baseball is the same whether it s Korea or the U.S., Hwang said through Kim. But I do acknowledge the fact it is a wonderful experience playing with some of the star players I am alongside and I am very grateful for that. I definitely feel the need to match their level of competition. However, my personality is naturally always confident. I feel like confidence always feeds into performance. So I try to be myself on the field. San Jose Mercury News Jimmy Rollins on his.113 average: I haven t felt lost Andrew Baggarly SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. Denard Span slung a duffel bag over his shoulder for a road exhibition game against the Mariners and called out to Jimmy Rollins, who wasn t on the travel list. Gonna try to raise this average over.100, Span said. Get a couple hits. Nah, you don t need those hits till April 2, or whatever, Rollins responded. But some of us do. Rollins spent his entire career using the spring schedule to ramp up for opening day. Now there is some heft to those exhibition stats. He is trying to make a Giants roster in a backup infield 8

9 competition stuffed with experienced candidates. And with less than a dozen days before camp breaks, he has a.113 average. A hot or cold spring can alter a team s roster blueprint to some extent, and the Giants wouldn t have brought Rollins to camp if they didn t envision a meaningful role for him. But if Manager Bruce Bochy had to pick his 25 guys now, it s hard to envision that Rollins would be one of them. Rollins, who is 3 for 26 with a home run, insisted he isn t feeling pressure to get some hits. I would love for them to start falling. I can tell you that, the 38-year-old former NL MVP said. I d love to start driving some balls. But pressure? No, it s not pressure. You start doing that, then you re really starting to go the wrong way. Rollins hasn t played since last June, when the Chicago White Sox released him, and Bochy acknowledged that the long layoff might impact how Rollins is being evaluated in terms of gaining his timing at the plate. Then again, first baseman/left fielder Michael Morse hadn t played since April of last year and he s bashing his way into serious consideration for a bench role. Aaron Hill, a late signee, also has outperformed Rollins as an infielder who could provide righthanded punch off the bench and an alternative in the lineup against left-handed starters. Hill is batting.286 with three doubles, and even his outs have been loud. Rollins is moving well in the field and has demonstrated plenty of aptitude at second base, which is among the things the Giants wanted to see. As for that lack of hits Well, you work, you go to the cage, Rollins said. I try to take what I like there, and try to transfer it from the cage to the field. Yesterday, I did what I wanted to. My first at-bat wasn t a good one, but they were throwing me sinkers away, so I m like, `OK, let s try to drive the ball to left field. Both times I hit the ball to left field. So that s progress. Now obviously, not having a guaranteed contract, progress is seen differently. But like I was just talking with Denard, it s, `Take your time. Work. For him, the clock doesn t start until April 2 and the first game. Until then, you keep trying to figure it out and don t worry about it. It s spring training. For him, nothing about spring training is going to affect your season, necessarily. The Giants must determine whether Rollins lack of results is due to diminished skills or whether he s a veteran who needs a little extra time to regain his stroke. He said he is coming back from his longest baseball layoff since he was a 9-year-old growing up in the East Bay. But I haven t felt out of place, I haven t felt lost, I haven t felt like there was a lapse of time, Rollins said. I ve felt fresh because I got to save my body for, I guess, four extra months. 9

10 The work I do here is always the same. Come in and try to make daily adjustments. Obviously everybody wants to get hits, and for some people it counts now. I m one of those guys, and the hits aren t there. But the positive thing, making the transition to second base, I m doing that pretty well. The guys seem to like me, and that s good. I m having fun in this clubhouse with this group of guys. So we ll see what happens. My energy is good, and that s very big. I ve just got to get on base to let it show. And now the question that can t be asked without a negative premise: What is Rollins career plan if he doesn t make the Giants roster to start the season? Well, he said, smiling. That question will be answered hopefully in the late future rather than the near future. MLB.com Moore shuts down Mariners over 5 innings Chris Haft PEORIA, Ariz. -- Consider Matt Moore among the Giants who probably wish they could start the regular season immediately. Moore surrendered two hits in five shutout innings for the Giants in Saturday's 6-5 Cactus League loss to the Mariners at Peoria Stadium. Moore maintained a perfect game through 3 2/3 until Kyle Seager walked. Coincidentally, Kyle's brother, Corey, shattered Moore's no-hit bid last Aug. 25 at Dodger Stadium with two outs in the ninth inning. The 27-year-old, San Francisco's projected No. 3 starter, sensed during his pregame warmup -- which didn't take too long in the 91-degree heat -- that he could rely on his fastball. "Everything just kind of came together for me today," said Moore, who yielded his first hit when Guillermo Heredia singled with one out in the fifth. "It felt like I had a live fastball in the bullpen, and I tried to keep that same mentality in the game." Moore's performance thrilled Giants manager Bruce Bochy: "I'm really very happy with where he is right now." Worth noting Bochy had ample praise for catcher Tim Federowicz, who has doubled in his last five games and in five of his past eight plate appearances. 10

11 "I told you guys that he's a doubles machine," Bochy said. "He's made some noise in this camp." Jae-gyun Hwang was scratched from Saturday's lineup with a laceration that he sustained when a bad-hop grounder struck his head as he took ground balls at third base on an auxiliary diamond at Scottsdale Stadium. Resting Hwang was a precautionary move, since he was not seriously injured. Tests proved that Hwang did not experience a concussion, Bochy said. Left-hander Will Smith, who appeared in his first exhibition game on Friday against Colorado, believes that he'll be ready for the regular season. Smith estimated that he could make as many as six more appearances, which would prepare him sufficiently. "Obviously my command wasn't quite where I wanted it to be," said Smith, who allowed two hits in a scoreless seventh. "That's something I'll have to continue to work on." MLB.com Tomlinson learning from vets fighting for utility job Chris Haft SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- The men who can hasten Kelby Tomlinson's big league career development are the same ones in position to block his progress. Tomlinson, 26, would appear to be an ideal candidate for a utility infield role with the Giants. They know him, having kept him in the Majors for portions of the previous two seasons. He's handy, having gained experience at second base, shortstop and third base. He has appeared in each of those spots this spring while batting.300. "I've done all that I can do," Tomlinson said before the Giants' 6-5 loss on Saturday to the Mariners at Peoria Stadium. "I've been playing hard, and I keep showing what my abilities are." Moreover, Tomlinson has no shortage of models, if not mentors, performing alongside him in camp. Fellow infielders Aaron Hill, Gordon Beckham and Jimmy Rollins have combined to amass approximately 35 years of Major League service time. However, those three non-roster players are preoccupied with their own attempt to make the Opening Day squad. Any guidance they give Tomlinson or any other young infielder is purely incidental or simply born of politeness or professionalism. Fortunately for Tomlinson, merely watching the likes of Hill, Beckham and Rollins during drills and games has furthered his baseball education. 11

12 "It's a great opportunity to learn and improve your game," Tomlinson said. "You don't want to be out here necessarily showing off your skills. You want to learn new skills, try to improve your current skills and work on things." Tomlinson said that he hasn't hesitated to ask questions of the veterans when he sees one of them perform a new trick. "You can talk and get an understanding of the mindset that goes with it, to pick their brains," Tomlinson said. This, Tomlinson said, helps a developing player such as himself determine whether he can incorporate what he observed. "If it helps you," Tomlinson said. "It might not. At least you can try something that might improve your game as you go forward." Tomlinson indeed plans to go forward, though circumstances might prevent this. He has a Minor League option remaining, which is attractive to the Giants. It enables them to drop him from the big league contingent without risk of losing him to another team through the waiver process. Thus, Tomlinson isn't guaranteed a roster spot even if he outplays a veteran. The Giants very carefully guard what they like to call their "inventory" of players. The front office knows that even if Tomlinson doesn't make the team out of Spring Training, he'll probably play in San Francisco at some point this season. "That's all stuff that I can't control," Tomlinson said. "Why should I go home and worry about what I can't do? When my job is to pick the rosters and that sort of stuff, that's when I'll start worrying about it. My job is to play the best I can whenever I get opportunities. That's what I'm focusing on each day. That's all I can worry about." 12

13 MLB.com Parker, Marrero homer behind sharp Moore Doug Miller and Chris Haft PEORIA, Ariz. -- The Mariners rallied for a 6-5 victory over the Giants on Saturday afternoon at Peoria Stadium on a day more defined by the stinginess of San Francisco starter Matt Moore and some opportunistic offense by both teams. Trailing 5-3 heading into the bottom of the eighth inning, the Mariners loaded the bases before drawing two consecutive walks (one by Tyler O'Neill, one by Chantz Mack) and amike Freeman sacrifice fly that put them ahead. Moore, the Giants' southpaw, was perfect for 32/3 innings and didn't give up a hit until allowing a Guillermo Heredia single with one out in the fifth. Moore ended up tossing five shutout frames, giving up only two singles and striking out four without walking a batter. San Francisco's bats got going early with three consecutive hits against Mariners starter Hisashi Iwakuma. Denard Span led off with a single, Joe Panik doubled him home for a quick 1-0 lead and Jarrett Parker followed with an RBI single. Parker added a solo homer to begin the third, his team-leading fourth long ball this spring, and Span tacked on an RBI triple in the sixth to make it 4-0. Asked whether Parker could do anything else to win the left-field vacancy, Giants manager Bruce Bochy observed, "He's been playing well on defense, too. I just watch his jumps on the ball, [and] he's throwing out some good at-bats." Iwakuma battled through his 32/3 innings, giving up three runs on six hits while striking out five without walking a batter. Iwakuma continued his progression toward the regular season, throwing 65 pitches (50 strikes). "I don't think too much about the end result as long as I get my job done for the day," Iwakuma said through an interpreter. "I need to work on a few things. I still need to fine-tune a couple of pitches. I also need to keep some of my pitches down in the zone. Overall, it's more getting something out of your start. I felt like I got something out of this one today." The Giants kept the Mariners off the scoreboard until a three-run sixth inning against David Hernandez, when Kyle Seager produced an RBI triple off the right-center field wall, Danny Valencia followed with an RBI double to center and Heredia knocked an RBI double. But San Francisco answered with another run in the seventh when Chris Marrero hit a solo homer. Giants Up Next: Right-hander Jeff Samardzija, who twice has pitched into the fourth inning 13

14 without completing it, will again attempt to build stamina as the Giants entertain Milwaukee in a 1:05 p.m. PT encounter on Sunday at Scottsdale Stadium. The game can be seen live on MLB.TV. Mariners Up Next: The Mariners will travel to Surprise to take on the division rival Rangers, in a 1:05 p.m. PT start. The game can be watched live on MLB.TV. Left-hander Dillon Overton will get the ball for Seattle as left-hander James Paxton pitches in a nearby Minor League game. Overton, who came over from Oakland in a trade on Jan. 26, went 1-3 with an ERA in seven games (five starts) for the A's last year. CSNbayarea.com Giants spring training day 34 Alex Pavlovic PEORIA, Ariz. While discussing his first full season in the National League, Matt Moore brought up an NL West game the Giants would rather forget. It is exciting to think about being able to do, like, what (Clayton) Kershaw did on opening day a few years ago, Moore said. He hit a solo home run and threw a nine-inning shutout. It s like, Wow, you literally had very little help that day. The Giants know that well. They were on the other side on April 1, 2013, when Kershaw spun a four-hitter and scored the game s first run with a leadoff homer in the eighth. Kershaw and the league s other preeminent left-hander, Madison Bumgarner, have set the bar high as two-way players. Kershaw has 70 hits over the past six seasons. Bumgarner, who is practically another slugger out there, has 76, including 14 homers. Moore knows he won t ever reach those heights. But he likes hitting, and he s working hard this spring to make himself a serviceable option. I know I m not very good at it, but I do enjoy just the whole game, he said. I think there s a strategy to what you have to do. Giants pitchers regularly compete with each other during batting practice, and that carries over into games. Moore got into the act before games last season, peppering Triples Alley, but he had just one hit in 24 at-bats after an August 1 trade. He s 3-for-38 in the big leagues, but at 27 years old, he s not far removed from being a two-way contributor. Moore followed Kyle Blanks as the first baseman at Moriarty High in New Mexico and he was set to play first and pitch in college. Instead he was drafted and signed by the Rays, but a decade later, he s ready for a crack at National League ball. 14

15 I ll be honest with you: If I was betting, I d probably rather have another hitter up there, but I do like the opportunity and the style of baseball in the National League, he said. I like to play. I m not saying I could play the everyday stuff, but just being in the box makes you feel like, Alright, I m playing baseball again. The perspective of seeing the ball at the knees gives you a little more confidence. Moore will get to hit in his next start, which comes Thursday at Scottsdale Stadium. At the Mariners home park on Saturday, he showed that there s little work to be done on the mound before opening day. In five innings, Moore allowed just two hits and struck out four. He retired the first 11 hitters he faced. He was on today, manager Bruce Bochy said. He s hitting his spots, good stuff, everything. I m really, really happy with where he s at right now. STOCK WATCH: Jarrett Parker is simply a different guy this spring. In each of his first two atbats, he took good two-strike pitches to keep the battle going. One of those led to a monster homer to dead center, his fourth of the spring. Parker came in as the favorite to start the season in left field and he s done nothing to lose his grip. Chris Marrero also went deep, giving him five homers for the spring. With Michael Morse swinging a hot bat it s hard to see how Marrero fits in, but he certainly has opened eyes over the past month. FLASHING THE LEATHER: Gordon Beckham took some fly balls in left field on Friday, but Saturday was all about showing off at his natural position. Beckham went a long way to snag a pop-up for Moore and he later made a leaping grab of a shot up the middle. Slade Heathcott might have made the play of the spring when he went into the right field corner for a sliding grab. Heathcott was up from minor league camp. STREAKING: Tim Federowicz has a double in five straight games, but no other hits during that span. Six of his last seven hits have been doubles. Now you know. I like him, Bochy said. He s made some noise in this camp. TRAINER S ROOM: A day after making his spring debut, Will Smith said all felt right in his left arm. Smith threw all his pitches in an inning Friday, and he ll play catch for a couple of days before getting back into games on Monday and Wednesday. No setbacks so far, he said. I m still looking to be ready for opening day. Cory Gearrin (cracked nail) will throw a bullpen session Sunday. FAMILIAR FACE: When the non-playing Mariners crossed the field to head off to the golf course or wherever, Chris Heston stopped by the dugout to hug Bochy and see some former teammates. Mariners people say Heston won t make the team, but he ll be one of the top options for a call-up should the team need a starter. 15

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