Weeks and Iwakuma strong in Mariners’ loss to the Diamondbacks

Hisashi Iwakuma settled in, Mike Zunino showed progress at the plate and a monster blast from Rickie Weeks highlighted the Mariners' loss to the D-Backs.

BY SHANNON DRAYER

Mar 7, 2015, 4:18 PM Updated: Mar 16, 2015, 11:14 am

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PEORIA, Ariz. – There was plenty of good in the Mariners’ 4-3 loss to the Diamondbacks Saturday afternoon.

First and foremost, Hisashi Iwakuma made his spring debut, working a quick two innings putting up zeros across the board with five ground outs and one fly out. He threw 22 pitches in the game and then a few more in the bullpen.

“Iwakuma threw the ball extremely well,” Lloyd McClendon said after the game. “I was very pleased. He looks healthy, he looks strong. He had a nice ballgame.”

Mike Zunino, who caught Iwakuma, was pleased as well.

“He was getting into his rhythm, which is the biggest thing,” he said. “He has got a lot of motion in his delivery so for him getting in sync is the biggest thing. If he can get the splitter one notch down I thought he did a great job today.”

It wasn’t a bad day for Zunino, either, who drove D.J. Peterson home with a RBI single pulled to left on a 3-2 count. While any at-bat against live pitching in spring training is important, situational opportunities are even more valuable, and Zunino made the most of his.

“It is really big,” he said. “You are not necessarily looking for a hit in that situation but just getting in that situation and going through your approach. That is really what I wanted to work on.”

It was a good at-bat from Zunino and nice to see. The big hit of the ballgame came off the bat of Rickie Weeks, however. Off the bat and over the batter’s eye in center, a feat that rarely happens. In other words, a monster shot.

“I thought he got it off the end a little bit,” Zunino deadpanned about the Weeks blast. “I asked him, but I told him I thought he got it off the end. No, I mean, that’s incredible!”

“It was a pretty good swing,” Weeks said. “It just feels good. The game yesterday, I felt good, I saw the ball good but I was too jumpy. Today I had the mindset of going out there just seeing the ball, not working so fast, just staying up the middle.”

Up the middle indeed. Weeks admitted to pressing a little bit early as he is eager to make a good impression with his new team.

“The jumpy is not going to leave me for some time, I am just being honest,” he said. “For me the main thing is just slowing everything down. When you go into spring training, the main thing I have to work on, and a lot of other big guys, is just seeing the ball, seeing pitches. When you have that you go into the season seeing everything, you are not looking to swing at the first pitch every time.”

Weeks seems to be settling in nicely. This is far from a typical spring training for him as it is the first time in his career he is with a team other than the Brewers, and also being a veteran making a position change. He seems to take it in stride and I like that he sees himself as a big guy. He certainly was that at the plate today.

Notes

• The travel team won their game 11-7 over the White Sox. Highlights included a three-run home run off the bat off Justin Ruggiano, Brad Miller going 2 for 3 with a double and RBI and Jordy Lara hitting a solo home run.

• As expected, Ji-Man Choi has cleared waivers and been assigned to Triple-A Tacoma.