M's catching a glimpse of spring

PEORIA, Ariz. — No one has to remind pitcher Aaron Small that things can change in a hurry.

Small will have to keep his faith on that front if he hopes to crack a Mariners starting rotation where all five spots appear locked up. But the notion of change is nothing new to the 35-year-old, a mostly minor-league journeyman who came seemingly from nowhere to go 10-0 and help the New York Yankees to the playoffs in 2005.

Just as quickly, before he could even win another game, Small was out of the majors again. The best he could do this spring was land a minor-league invitation to Mariners camp, where he is one of several non-roster hopefuls seeking one more taste of glory.

"It's important to keep a good attitude," Small said Thursday as the Mariners staged their first official workout for pitchers and catchers at the Peoria Sports Complex. "I'll tell you what, it was a fun run in New York. But I'm not here to prove anything to anybody. Not even myself. I don't think 'prove' is the right word. I just want to play baseball."

So do other non-roster invites like Jim Parque, the former Chicago White Sox starter attempting a comeback on a rebuilt shoulder at age 32 after nearly three years away from professional ball. The non-roster pitcher with likely the best shot at making the team is reliever Arthur Rhodes, hoping to solidify the left side of his former team's bullpen at age 37.

But cracking this squad, where almost the entire roster had been set before camp even opened, won't be easy.

"It's not tough for me and the staff," M's manager Mike Hargrove said of the scarcity of openings. "It probably makes our job easier. The tough part is keeping an open enough mind to allow somebody's really good performance to make you start seriously considering them winning a job."

There's always the chance of an injury freeing up a spot. Also the hope — one all non-roster invites carry — that a solid spring might entice another big-league club to come calling.

Parque's two-way deal with the Mariners takes that latter possibility into consideration. Besides a $450,000 base salary if he makes the majors, he can earn steadily increasing incentives that max out at $1 million once he spends 55 games with the team.

And if he isn't added to Seattle's roster by July 1, he's free to walk away as a free agent.

"I just want to get myself back to where I was and being here will allow me to do that," said Parque, who spent Thursday trying to remember all the things he'd forgotten about life as a big-leaguer.

"This guy's been helping me remember," he said, glancing at one-time, major-league reliever Matt Perisho, another non-roster invite occupying the locker next to his. "I'd forgotten how hard big-league pitchers throw. But he showed me."

Small signed with Seattle after he'd been told he'd compete for the fifth starter's job, but that was before the Mariners inked free agent Jeff Weaver and effectively closed off the final rotation opening.

It's been quite a turnaround for Small, who entered camp with the Yankees last spring secure in the knowledge — for the first time in his professional career — that he had a big-league job waiting. The $1.2 million deal he'd signed with New York was "more money than I'd made my entire career combined" and neighbors in his small town of Loudon, Tenn., had spent the winter treating him far differently.

"I didn't really like that part, but I guess it's to be expected," he said. "They see things differently. It's like you're a celebrity when you play for the Yankees and come back to a small place like that."

But things came apart for Small last spring when he strained a hamstring while running. He didn't get back to the Yankees until May 1, failed to win a game and was designated for assignment in June.

"It was really frustrating because I felt like a team does when it comes off a championship and wants to repeat," he said. "I wanted to show everyone that going 10-0 wasn't a fluke.

"Now, it seems almost like I've got to start all over again. But that's OK. The way I look at it, 2005 is a year I'll never forget. God blessed me with that year. And right now, I've got to deal with the present and make the best of it that I can."

Geoff Baker: 206-464-8286 or gbaker@seattletimes.com