Near the end of a news conference announcing catcher Cal Raleigh’s six-year, $105 million contract extension with the Seattle Mariners on Friday afternoon, a question came from the back row.
Raleigh looked up and noticed the last few seats had been filled with members of the Mariners’ pitching staff.
“Oh, no,” said Raleigh, realizing what he was in for.
Bryce Miller, who is scheduled to start against the Athletics on Saturday, had the first question.
“So last week we went to Mastro’s to eat,” said Miller, referring to a pricey steakhouse in Scottsdale, Ariz., “and you let Logan (Gilbert) put his (credit) card down. I was wondering if you plan on reimbursing him?”
“Well, the deal wasn’t done yet,” Raleigh replied.
Pitcher Bryan Woo, who roomed with Raleigh last season and obviously was angling for a gift, later asked, “In football, when a QB gets paid, he does a pretty good job of taking care of his O-linemen … they’re in the trenches with you every day. You put any thought toward that?”
“Usually, it’s the other way around,” Raleigh responded. “The pitchers are supposed to take care of the catchers.”
Those light moments in the news conference pretty much were the highlight of the day for the Mariners, who managed just five hits while being blanked 7-0.
Brent Rooker, rookie Max Muncy and pinch-hitter Luis Urias homered for the A’s.
Rooker bounced back after striking out four times in a 4-2 loss on Opening Day, Muncy’s blast to left-center was his first major-league hit – he got the silent treatment when he returned to the dugout – and Urias went deep against the team he played sparingly for last season.
Add in Tyler Soderstrom’s pair of solo shots Thursday and the A’s have five home runs through two games.
A’s left-hander Jeffrey Springs, acquired in an offseason trade with Tampa Bay, pitched six innings and allowed three hits with nine strikeouts.
“(Springs) controlled the game and changed speeds really well,” A’s manager Mark Kotsay said. “Nine punchouts in six innings says a lot about the performance itself.”
A’s right-hander Osvaldo Bido (5-3, 3.41 ERA last season) will have a tough act to follow Saturday after fellow starters Luis Severino and Springs each pitched six scoreless innings in the first two games of the season.
Severino, signed as a free agent in the offseason, became a mentor for Bido this spring.
“He’s a guy with a lot of talent and I think he still has room to get even better,” Severino told MLB.com. “That’s why I’m always watching his bullpens and live BPs. To see what I can share with him from what I know or what I’ve learned over my time in the big leagues. We’re always playing catch and pausing to see if I can help work on his mechanics, glove position, secondary pitches, small things like that. To see what a tremendous talent he is … it’s incredible.”
The Mariners feel the same way about Miller, who went 12-8 with a 2.94 ERA in 2024, his first full season in the majors.
-Field Level Media
