Baseball: Brewers lose NL debut
■ Continued from Page 7
es.”
The Tampa Bay Devil Rays, however, looked ex
actly like the expansion team it is in an 11-6 loss to
Detroit at St. Petersburg, Fla.
The Devil Rays fell behind 11-0 after five innings
and the sellout crowd of 45,369 at Tropicana Field
had little to cheer except for Wade Boggs’ home run.
“This is one of 162. Unfortunately, it was a big
one — opening day — but the others won’t all go
like this,” Tampa Bay shortstop Kevin Stocker said.
The new team, though, had something that no one
else in the majors has: A cigar bar inside its ballpark.
It s a fabulous place,” said Devil Rays owner
Vince Naimoli. "Tampa was known as the cigar city
a long time ago. We wanted it to reflect that heritage.
That’s why we put it in.”
In Phoenix, some fans at the Bank One Ballpark
also had a unique view — from a pool, heated spa
and a swim-up bar beyond the right-center field
fence.
The aquatic area, which holds 35 people and
costs $4,000 per game to rent, was ready to make its
debut when the Arizona Diamondbacks played host
to the Colorado Rockies.
One warning: Fans in the pool had better bring
their gloves, along with their swimsuits. Colorado
Rockies star Larry Walker hit a ball into the water
during batting practice Monday.
Other highlights on opening day:
® The Tigers won in their first game since shifting
from the AL East to the Central to accommodate the
Devil Rays.
■ Milwaukee lost to Atlanta 2-1 in its first game
since becoming the only team to switch leagues this
century. The Brewers seemed to handle the National
League style just fine; with no designated hitter,
pitcher Cal Eldred singled off four-time Cy Young
winner Greg Maddux.
■ In the longest scoreless opener in NL history,
pinch-hitter Alberto Castillo’s single with two outs
and the bases loaded in the 14th inning gave the Mets
a 1-0 win over Philadelphia.
* Pokey Reese tied an opening-day record for
shortstops with four errors, helping San Diego and
newcomer Kevin Brown beat Cincinnati 10-2.
Johnson still a fan favorite in Seattle
After an offseason of
turmoil, the former Cy
Young award winner
received the loudest
ovation of all Mariners
before their season
opener
The Associated Press
SEATTLE — Randy John
son’s future with the Seattle
Mariners may be uncertain, but
he was the clear fan favorite as
he took the mound in Tuesday’s
opening night contest against
Cleveland.
“I’d much rather trade Woody
Woodward than Randy John
son,” said fan Jason Weber of
Seattle, referring to Seattle’s gen
eral manager.
“I kick the cat when I think
about the Big Unit leaving,” said
Kevin Borgquist of Seattle.
Although Johnson received
the loudest, longest ovation as
the team lineups were an
nounced — surpassing the
hearty receptions given Ken Grif
fey Jr. and Alex Rodriguez — he
didn’t deliver his usual domi
nant performance.
The 1995 American League Cy
Young Award winner allowed 11
hits and six runs, five earned, in
5 2/3 innings.
Johnson received a standing
ovation when he was lifted for re
liever Bobby Ayala after strug
gling in the sixth.
“We were trying to show
Randy that we really do care and
we want him to stay,” said John
Ishmael of Redmond, Wash., one
of a regular-season record 57,822
fans in the Kingdome.
“Heartwarming,” Johnson said
of the applause. “It felt really
good.”
He is in the final year of a con
tract that pays him $6 million
this season. The Mariners have
made no move to extend his con
tract and Johnson expressed a
strong desire to be traded as re
cently as two weeks ago.
During spring training Johnson
said, “I don’t want to be here . . .
I’m just not happy.”
But Tuesday night he was
philosophical.
“The sun will come up tomor
row and in five days I’ll be pitch
ing again,” he said.
“I don’t think we need to put
this game under a microscope
and analyze it too much,” John
son added. “We’ll bounce back
— it’s the first game.”
Since joining the Mariners in
1989 after a trade with the Mon
treal Expos, Johnson has won
four AL strikeout crowns and
r
((1 kick the cat when I
think about the Big Unit
leaving. ”
Kevin Borgquist
Seattle fan
leads the major leagues in strike
outs during the 1990s.
“We didn’t see a typical Randy
Johnson performance tonight,"
Cleveland manager Mike Har
grove said. “Usually when Randy
gets a couple of runs you can
pretty much shut it down and get
ready for tomorrow.”
“Randy didn’t have as good of
stuff as he usually has,” Seattle
manager Lou Piniella said.
“i’ll get better as the season
progresses,” Johnson said. “I just
hope I’ll have another six-run
lead to protect.”
The Mariners entertained
trade offers for Johnson
throughout the off-season, most
notably from the New York
Yankees, the Indians and Los
Angeles Dodgers, but were un
able to reach a deal.
Seattle management has since
expressed a willingness to let
Johnson play out his contract in
Seattle if an acceptable deal is
not reached.
Mariners: Johnson
lasts just six innings
■ Continued from Page 7
Mesa pitched 2 1/3 perfect
innings for the win as a setup
man and Jackson got the save.
Last October, Mesa failed to
hold a ninth-inning lead in
Game 7 of the World Series,
and Florida wound up win
ningin the 11th.
“I’ve been thinking about it
the last 10 days or two weeks of
spring training,” Hargrove said.
“I just never really saw Jose
turn it up to where I felt like he
was prepared to go back into
the closer’s role. But that does
n't mean in two weeks he’s not
going to be the closer again.”
“Going into spring training,
we realized that probably the
last three to four years that the
strength of our pitching has
been our bullpen,” Hargrove
said. “So far so good. These
guys are good pitchers.”
In the ninth, Mesa struck out
Alex Rodriguez, Assenmacher
got Griffey to foul out and Jack
son got Martinez to ground out.
“I take the same mentality
every time I go out and pitch,”
said Jackson. “In my heart, I felt
like I was the closer anyway
coming into the game in the
ninth inning.”
Piniella insisted this spring
that his bullpen was vastly im
proved over last season. He stuck
by that view after the game.
“It’s only one game. I still con
tend we’re going to have good
pitching,” Piniella said. “I’m a
little disappointed tonight, but
it will get much better.”
He said criticism of Seattle’s
bullpen by the media was “un
merciful.”
“Give these guys a chance,”
Piniella said. “They’re going to
pitch well.”
The Mariners set a major
league record with 264 home
runs last year, and used their
power to take a 9-3 lead after
five innings.
Griffey, who hit 56 homers
last season in becoming the
American League MVP, Buhn
er and Davis each connected
off Charles Nagy in a six-run
fifth inning.
But Randy Johnson, Seattle’s
opening-day starter for the
sixth and presumably final
time, also was ineffective. He
allowed six runs and 11 hits
and two walks in 5 2/3 innings.
“I usually lick my chops
when I have a lead that big,”
Johnson said. “When you’ve
got that big of a lead, the of
fense has done its job.”
The Mariners took a 9-6 lead
into the eighth. Ayala walked
pinch-hitter Jim Thome and
Kenny Lofton hit an RBI triple.
After Omar Vizquel walked,
Fossas came in and walked
David Justice.
Timlin relieved, and a two
run double by Manny Ramirez
tied it at 9. Pinch-hitter Brian
Giles was intentionally walked
to load the bases, but Timlin
walked Travis Fryman on five
pitches to force home the go
ahead run.
Kenny Lofton, reacquired by
the Indians in the offseason,
was the only left-handed hitter
in the starting lineup against
Johnson. Thome and Justice
began the game on the bench.
The Mariners appeared to
break open the game in the
fifth. Griffey hit a 404-foot
homer into the Kingdome’s
right-field third deck and Buh
ner homered after newcomer
David Segui’s second double.
Davis homered after a walk by
Glenallen Hill and a single by
Dan Wilson.
The Indians came back
against Johnson in the sixth,
chasing him with three runs.
Sandy Alomar doubled and
Jeff Manto hit an RBI single.
Enrique Wilson doubled,
Lofton had an RBI groundout
and d Manto and Vizquel sin
gled home a run.
Martinez gave Seattle a 2-0
lead in the first when he home
red over the center-field wall
after Nagy hit Griffey with a
pitch in the ankle.
The Indians went ahead 3-2
in the fourth on Alomar’s
homer. The Mariners tied the
score in the bottom half on
doubles by Segui and Buhner.
BOOK NOV!
oUmnjer s
coming!
(.bey Titbit. &T«e.( Ajvitt.
Vi<« PeobU.
Rally For Organics
Join Us For A Rally To Support Organic Food As
We Know It
• Say Yes To Food That Is Produced In An Earth Friendly Way
• Say Yes To Your Right To Know How Your Food Is Produced
• Say Yes To Your Right To Choose The Kind Of Food You Want
• Say Yes To Farmers, Manufacturers And Businesses Who
Produce And Sell Healthy Food With Integrity
• Say Yes To A Political Process That Is Democratic And Not
Corrupted By A Big Money Corporate Agenda
Saturday, April 4
1pm Downtown Plaza
Willamette And Broadway In Eugene
Speakers To Include Peter DeFazio
And Others To Explain This Complex Issue
For more Info, call 686
6761 or email
earthsav@efn.org
24th & Hilyard 7am-11pm 343-9142
^ y NATURE
]ohcc
NATURAL FOODS
UNIVERSITY OF OREGON / UOM
Singular
Sensations.
What’s new at the museum ?
Join us this evening for the opening reception
of our aNew Acquisitions” spring exhibit,
including a tour of the presentation at 7 p.m.
We’re also hosting Eugene Singles Night,
with music by Craig Einhorn.
MusEveninjjs
The Spring Scene in Eugene!
’.very Wednesday from 5-8 p.m. at the UO Museum of Art.
Free to all! Call 346-3027 for more information