The Associated Press
Ichiro Suzuki and the M's improved to 9-12 in spring training after a 9-4 win on Wednesday.

Martinez finds stroke as Mariners club Cubs

JIM COUR, THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Originally published Thursday, March 21, 2002

PEORIA, Ariz. -- Edgar Martinez hit two homers and drove in four runs and Mike Cameron also homered as the Seattle Mariners beat a Chicago Cubs split squad 9-4 Wednesday.

Cameron, the Mariners' All-Star and Gold Glove center fielder, homered off Juan Cruz, the Cubs' No. 3 starter, with the bases empty in the second.

He also had an RBI single.

Cameron missed eight days because of back spasms and said he still doesn't feel 100 percent.

"It's bad enough for me to have a few twinges here and there," he said.

Cameron said he never had back trouble in his life until this spring. He was injured when he ran into a wall in a game in a game March 11 against the Chicago White Sox.

"It's always a concern when something hinders you when you don't bounce back as quickly as you think you should," he said.

Martinez hit a three-run homer off Cruz in the fourth and led off the sixth with a homer off Scott Chiasson.

The Cubs played with two regulars in their lineup and one of them, center fielder Corey Patterson, had a three-run homer off Joel Pineiro in the fifth.

Pineiro is the leading candidate to be the Mariners' No. 5 starter this season. He is battling Ryan Franklin and left-hander John Halama for the spot.

In five innings, Pineiro gave up four runs on six hits, with no walks and five strikeouts.

"I felt good," he said. "I felt great. It was just one bad pitch. That ruined my whole outing. But that's what we're here for. To make sure that doesn't happen during the season."

The Mariners broke a tie at 4 in the fifth when Dan Wilson doubled, moved to third on Mark McLemore's infield out and came home on Jeff Cirillo's single up the middle.

Jeff Nelson and closer Kazuhiro Sasaki each pitched two scoreless innings for Seattle.

Martinez and Kevin Orie of the Cubs each went 3-for-4.

M's glance

- Wednesday: Seattle 9, Cubs 4.

- Today: Seattle vs. Oakland, at Phoenix, 6 p.m.

The Olympian Copyright 2002

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