Mariners notebook: Intrigue at the top of the lineup?

PEORIA, Ariz. – There is absolutely no predicting lineups in spring training. With the number of players in camp, the different schedules to get individuals ready and the need to play certain players at different positions they might be needed at during the season, pretty much anything goes until the last week of the spring.

Yesterday we saw Jesus Montero at the bottom of the lineup as the DH. Today we see Rickie Weeks at the top of the lineup with Austin Jackson, the leadoff hitter, hitting second. I asked Lloyd McClendon if there was anything to this.

“He (Weeks) has a 4:30 dentist appointment,” he said with a chuckle. “Get his three at-bats quicker. Really that’s the only thing.”

Okay, but this is not the only time we have seen Jackson hit second. Earlier this spring he hit second with James Jones at leadoff twice in three days.

“I just thought it was a different look,” said McClendon. “You have Jones and his ability to steal bases and Jackson’s ability to hit the ball the other way. It’s kind of interesting.”

Also kind of interesting, Jones has had the most at-bats on the club this spring. Now a lot of these at-bats have come off of the bench and there aren’t a ton of non-veteran outfield options in camp, but still he is getting a number of opportunities here.

This obviously isn’t for now. There is not room on the roster for a sixth outfielder, but he is getting looks – targeted looks, by what McClendon said. Still, he warned the media group not to make anything of Jackson hitting second.

“As we speak now, yeah, he’s my leadoff hitter. So we can squash all of that,” he said.

While there aren’t a lot of question marks with the team this year, Jackson is eligible to be a free agent next fall, so figuring out who will man center field beyond 2015 is one. Something to watch throughout the year.

Lineup!

Weeks DH
Jackson 8
Cano 4
Cruz 9
Seager 5
Ruggiano 7
Morrison 3
Zunino 2
Miller 6

Ramirez

J.A. Happ is throwing a sim game today as McClendon prefers to keep starters from teams they face early in the season. Relievers we could see in this game include Carson Smith, Justin Germano, Dominick Leone, Mark Lowe, Tyler Olson and Jordan Pries.

Notes

• It’s that time again. The Mariners commercials have been released and they were a huge hit in the clubhouse. Not surprisingly, Tom Wilhelmsen and Charlie Furbush appear to have stolen the show with their portrayal of rock stars. The original plan called for a script and just a couple of seconds of airtime for the duo, who were the complementary pieces in a spot that features Kyle Seager. The script went out the window, though, and the filmmakers ended up with over 30 minutes of footage of the relievers and a music video was added. That’s what brilliant casting will do for you.

The spots can be seen here.

• We had a few more members of the national media in camp this morning with Ken Rosenthal and Richard Justice stopping by. Often with visitors we hear questions that have been asked before and often the answers are the same. Still, McClendon’s answer this morning to a question about the steps the club was able to take last year caught my ear.

“We had a lot of talent in here and we had to get them to start playing as a team and believing in their abilities to go out and get it done,” he said.

“I felt that we got every ounce of energy out of that club last year and they did a tremendous job for us. Yeah, we came up a little short and that was tough to swallow. To think that the Giants had one more win then we did and they won the World Series, and with our pitching staff, if we could have got in it would have been pretty interesting. You live and learn and your past prepares you for your future and hopefully this prepared us for our future here. We’ll see.”

• Montero update: He’s in camp, he’s in shape, his attitude is great. How about his game?

“He’s got to work on it, he’s got to clean it up,” said McClendon. “There’s a big loop in his swing, he’s going to have to make some changes and we are going to address it. It doesn’t happen overnight.”

So what exactly are they looking for from him? The blueprint he laid out in 2012.

“His rookie season in the big leagues he hit close to .270 with 15 home runs and 60 RBIs,” McClendon pointed out. “It’s certainly in there. We just haven’t seen it. He has to get back to it. I think he is capable of doing that because he reached it. He should be able to go beyond it.

“I saw a guy a few years ago who had power to right center and drove in some runs. He should be able to do that.”

• McClendon confirmed that James Paxton would make his Cactus League debut Sunday against the Rangers. Hisashi Iwakuma will most likely throw a sim game that day.

• Guests for the Cactus League Report tonight that can be heard on 710 ESPN Seattle from 6-7 p.m. include Taijuan Walker, James Jones and Tyler Olson.

Related

Seahawks QB Sam Darnold makes big climb in NFL Top 1003 reasons why Brock likes Seahawks’ Terrion Arnold signingWyman & Bob react to Seahawks’ Terrion Arnold signingWhy Brock says UW Huskies will be ‘very relevant’ in CFP conversationMariners Injury Updates: Vargas’ rehab, notes on J.P. and moreReport: CB Terrion Arnold, who is facing 8 felony charges, plans to join Seahawks