Halama joins M's starting rotation; Pineiro a reliever

OLYMPIAN NEWS SERVICES

Originally published Thursday, April 4, 2002

SEATTLE -- Mariners manager Lou Piniella has changed his mind about his No. 5 starter.

Piniella picked left-hander John Halama as the fifth starter Wednesday, moving right-hander Joel Pineiro to a relief role.

"We feel Pineiro is very valuable and he enhances our bullpen," Piniella said. "At the same time, it puts Halama in the rotation where he wants to be."

With Halama, the Mariners have two lefties in the rotation, along with No. 2 starter Jamie Moyer. Seattle has the option to use righty Ryan Franklin in the rotation, too, in order to not pitch Moyer and Halama on consecutive days, Piniella said. They have similar pitching styles.

Pitching coach Bryan Price said the fifth starter will only make two starts in the first two months of the season.

"This is kind of a way of figuring out what we really have with both John and Ryan as starters," Price said. "And it allows them to do something they both like to do."

Pineiro, who pitched two scoreless innings of relief in Monday's 6-5 opening day loss to the White Sox, will be used in a middle setup role, Piniella said. He could go three innings.

When asked if his solid effort in Monday's season opener may have contributed to his new role in the bullpen, Pineiro laughed.

"It might have," he said. "I wonder what would have happened if I gave up a couple of runs. Things might be different."

Halama, 30, is scheduled to make his first start of the season Tuesday night in Anaheim, which would have been Pineiro's day to start.

"I'm sure everybody wants to start," Halama said. "But there's only one spot available. It's Lou's call. All I can do is do what I can do."

He said he won't put pressure on himself to have two perfect games in his two starts. But he said he is confident after a strong spring training.

"Who knows how long it will last?" Halama said. "All I have is two starts. It's what I want to do. I don't want to be in the bullpen. But nothing is etched in stone or carved in concrete."

The 6-foot-5 Halama was 6-6 with a 5.78 ERA in 17 starts last year, and 4-1 with a 1.84 ERA in 14 relief appearances.

In half a season in Seattle last year, Pineiro had a 6-2 record with a 2.03 ERA in 17 games, 11 of them starts, and 75 1-3 innings.

Franklin pitched poorly in Monday's opener, allowing three runs in two-thirds of an inning.

- ON THE RUN: Edgar Martinez's second-inning run placed him one step closer to earning another mark in the Mariners' record book.

Martinez scored his 1,062nd run with Seattle, moving him one away from Ken Griffy Jr.'s mark of 1,063. When the 15-year veteran achieves the feat, it will be his seventh team record. He already holds the marks for games, at-bats, hits, doubles, walks and batting average.

- ODDS AND ENDS: Ichiro Suzuki came into Wednesday's game riding a 15-game hitting steak -- 13 straight at the end of 2001 and two in the season's first two games -- and used a dramatic ninth-inning single to extend the run to 16... Luis Ugueto made his major league debut as a pinch runner in the ninth inning. Ugueto, a Rule V draft pick, ran for Ruben Sierra and scored in the Mariners' comeback win.

The Olympian Copyright 2002

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