Mariners
Notebook: Heaverlo suffers minor setback during first day of workouts

By Bob Finnigan
Seattle Times staff reporter

	ELAINE THOMPSON / AP Seattle manager Bob Melvin watches as Aaron Looper throws during yesterday's workout.
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PEORIA, Ariz. — Moses Lake native Jeff Heaverlo has some discomfort in his arm and it's the pits — literally.

The right-hander felt a twinge in the teres major of his right arm, which is located around the arm pit, throwing in yesterday's first spring workout. So the Mariners will not have him take his scheduled bullpen workout today.

"He was supposed to open up by throwing the first two days here, and now we'll hold him out until Monday," pitching coach Bryan Price said.

Heaverlo, the Moses Lake native with the great slider, said they had to show him on a diagram which muscle he had disturbed.

"Teres major, they told me," he said. "I didn't even know I had one of those."

It's nowhere near as bad as what he went through two springs back when he tore his labrum in camp, but he's still frustrated.

"After all I've gone through," he said. "I felt so good. I worked hard all winter to be ready and I guess I just did too much throwing since I came down here a couple of weeks ago. They just want me to take it easy."

Price added that because of what Heaverlo went through two spring ago, the club wants to be careful how they handle the highly-regarded pitcher.

"We really want to see him pitch in games, so we'll take it easy," Price said.
 
What the coach really wants to see is how big-league hitters react to Heaverlo's vaunted slider, which was suspected to have caused his arm troubles.

Actually, Heaverlo throws different sliders, including a nasty one that hitters have had so much trouble with.

"Just two kinds of slider," he said. "The talk of seven is just urban legend."

"Our minor-league guys said he was throwing the big one at the end of the season last year," Price said. "For much of the year, he got by spotting his fastball and throwing his change. He broke the slider out late and they said it was a good one."

Heaverlo said the return of the good slider came as he returned from a strained oblique muscle.

"I had been getting by with fastballs and changes and showing only a little wrinkle (breaking ball) now and then," he said. "But after I hurt my oblique I was in the bullpen in Portland one day and Slate (minor-league coach Jim Slaton) said, 'Can you remember how you throw the good slider? Let it rip; what have you got to lose?' "

Heaverlo did and after a year and a half of not throwing his out pitch, there it was.

"Good as ever," he said.

Notes

• Discussing his reply to the Dodgers' request to interview him for the general-manager vacancy, former Mariners GM Pat Gillick said: "I went down and met with Frank McCourt, the guy that bought the Dodgers. I honestly think they were looking for more innovation than I might have given them. They like the Theo Epstein (younger) approach."

McCourt hired Oakland assistant Paul DePodesta, 31, on Monday. Even had he been offered the job, Gillick was not eager to leave his consultant situation with Seattle and to move to Los Angeles. Working for the Mariners he can work out of home in Toronto.

• Allen Turner, formerly the interpreter for Kazu Sasaki, will stay as bullpen catcher and sometimes interpret for Ichiro, which will allow Hide Sueyoshi, who has interpreted for the outfielder, to skip road trips.

• After having surgery to remove bone chips in his right elbow two weeks ago, Mariners manager Bob Melvin said he expects to be able to throw batting practice in another week.

"I really missed that part of my routine last year when I couldn't throw. You learn a lot about your hitters when you throw to them, subtle changes that come during the season where they may pulling off the ball, things like that."

Copyright © 2004 The Seattle Times Company