Notebook | Five Mariners will wear No. 42

Growing up in the Dominican Republic meant that Miguel Batista didn't hear all that much about Jackie Robinson.

But that didn't stop the 36-year-old Mariners starter from wanting to learn more about the Dodgers legend once he arrived in the United States. Batista figures Robinson opened doors for baseball players of all minority groups, not just African Americans, when he broke the color barrier back in 1947.

That's why Batista, who is to start this afternoon's game against Texas, will be one of five Mariners donning jerseys with Robinson's No. 42 on Sunday to commemorate the 60th anniversary of his historic achievement. The jerseys will be signed by those who wear them, then auctioned off on MLB.com with proceeds going to the Jackie Robinson Foundation.

"Before Jackie Robinson, there was only white Caucasian Cubans that could play," Batista said of Robinson's impact on Latin American players. "I think he made people see all the colors."

The only active African-American player on Seattle's roster is newly acquired outfielder Jason Ellison, who will also wear No. 42, as will injured pitcher Arthur Rhodes.

"It's a big deal to me," Ellison said. "If it wasn't for him, who knows what might have happened in this game as far as players from all nationalities being in the game and allowed to play professionally."

The other Mariners donning No. 42 on Jackie Robinson Day are all from Latin America, including Batista, fellow Dominican native Adrian Beltre and Venezuela-born second baseman Jose Lopez.

Batista says he wishes more players stayed informed about the pioneers of the game. He notes that several American-born players don't know full details of Robinson's achievements, just like many young Dominicans are uninformed about Ozzie Virgil Sr., who became the first major-leaguer from that country in 1958.

"It took a few years for Ozzie Virgil to make it even after Jackie Robinson," Batista said. "So if Jackie hadn't done it, I don't think he would have made it either."

Lopez said he first learned of Robinson when he was 14 from a youth-league coach in Venezuela.

"He told us how well he played, what a great player he was," Lopez said, adding that he hopes to find a way to keep his No. 42 jersey and hang it in his house in Venezuela. "He told us he played hard, played well for the team.

"He made a big difference," he said. "It was good for us."

Ramirez gets his throws in

Poor Horacio Ramirez finally had the chance to throw a bullpen session at Safeco Field on Friday. Ramirez is the only active Seattle player who has yet to get into an official game, given how his season debut was snowed out in Cleveland before five innings were completed.

Just getting a chance to throw on the side has been a major challenge for Ramirez as he prepares for his Sunday start — on eight days' rest.

"It's been crazy because you can't just go out there and throw bullpens," he said. "There's been no window. In Boston the other day, the whole day it was raining, it was cold, it was miserable. In Cleveland, obviously, it was the same thing. So, you try to get the most out of days you can throw."

Ramirez went through something similar in his rookie season with the Braves in 2003. He was the fifth starter on a very good staff, occasionally seeing his turn skipped in the rotation but still winning 12 games.

A recipe for success, perhaps?

"I'd still rather go every five days," he said.

A loss of momentum

Manager Mike Hargrove is none too thrilled about the early-season scheduling that has left his club scrambling to maintain the momentum it had coming out of spring training.

"I have personal feelings on that, that would blister the hell out of people if they heard them," Hargrove said with a laugh. "So I'd prefer to keep them to myself."

Hargrove did let slip that the June 11 off-day, nestled between a trip to San Diego and Chicago, is when a potential Mariners-Indians doubleheader could be played in Cleveland.

Despite a winning record, the Mariners entered Friday night's game sporting the majors' worst batting average (.187) and third-worst earned-run average (5.32).

"Baseball is a game that's meant to be played, not practiced," Hargrove said.

Notes

• Rhodes was to arrive at the stadium around 6 p.m. for a closed-door chat with head trainer Rick Griffin. Rhodes is still trying to decide on his next move after a magnetic-resonance-imaging examination this week revealed a tear in the ulnar collateral ligament in his left elbow.

• Lopez thinks that the game on Wednesday in Boston, a one-hitter by Felix Hernandez, was the best he has played defensively in the majors. Lopez made diving snares of grounders in both directions to help keep a Hernandez no-hitter alive until the eighth. "I haven't played like that since Triple A," Lopez said. "With Felix out there, it keeps you ready."

• Raul Ibanez hit the 200th double of his career, a smash into the right-field corner, in the first inning.

For the record

Streak: L1

Home: 2-2

Road: 1-1

vs. AL West: 2-2

vs. Anaheim: 0-0

vs. Oakland: 2-1

vs. Texas: 0-1

vs. AL East: 1-1

vs. AL Central: 0-0

vs. NL: 0-0

vs. LHP: 0-0

vs. RHP: 3-3

Day: 1-1

Night: 2-2

One-run: 0-0

Extra innings: 0-0

Home attendance

Friday's crowd: 25,243

Season total: 119, 349

Biggest crowd: 46,003 (April 2)

Smallest crowd: 22,816 (April 4)

Average (four dates): 29,837

2006 average (four dates): 27,415