Mariners Notebook | Beltre hoping new approach pays off

PEORIA, Ariz. — A curly topped Adrian Beltre rolled into camp on Sunday and looked fairly comfortable taking his first batting practice swings.

Beltre altered his winter hitting regimen from what he did the previous five years. He usually starts swinging full-out in cages by early November, but this time held off the heavy work until January in hopes the change would help him avoid another early-season slump.

"Maybe I was swinging too much," he said. "It's not like I didn't hit. But I was doing more drills and less swings. If that works, maybe I'll be doing that every year."

The drills involved coordination work and other things hitting coach Jeff Pentland suggested. It still involved swinging at balls, just not the sheer volume Beltre is used to.

Beltre has started slowly his first two Seattle seasons, with 18 of his 25 homers last year coming after the All-Star break. He has tried all types of alterations, both in-season and out, in an attempt to feel more comfortable

The slick-fielding third baseman also doesn't take many ground balls until he gets to camp. He works at it once or twice a week on a field behind his home in Los Angeles and says, "The field's not too good."

Beltre will spend the early part of camp getting his eyes adjusted to the hops taken by grounders. Once his mechanics fall back into place, he said he'll focus more on hand placement.

The one thing Beltre did plenty of work on this winter was growing some hair, which is much thicker and curlier than the close-shaved do he sported last season. His infant son, Adrian Jr., now six months old, also grew some this winter, but Beltre says: "It's much better-looking than mine. He must get it from his mother."

Today looms large for Lowe

Mariners reliever Mark Lowe has a big meeting scheduled for today with Dr. Lew Yocum, the physician who performed arthroscopic surgery to help regenerate the cartilage in his right elbow last October. Lowe has been resting the arm since and hopes to be cleared to begin his rehabilitation.

"If he clears me, then we'll take it from there," Lowe said. "It depends on how I feel. It could be May, June, July."

Lowe went 1-0 with a 1.93 earned-run average in 15 outings for the Mariners in July and August after beginning the season in Class A. But instead of finishing the season on a high, he wound up on the disabled list, and the routine surgery he later underwent turned up a problem that required much more recovery time.

"It was tough," he said. "It was a real emotional change for me. I've just been trying to stay positive through the whole thing."

Batters up

The Mariners staged their closest thing yet to a major-league batting practice as several regulars showed up a day ahead of today's scheduled physicals. Beltre, Raul Ibanez and Yuniesky Betancourt all did their first hitting of the spring, alongside Kenji Johjima and Jose Guillen — who have been here all week.

Richie Sexson also arrived in camp Sunday, but limited his workout to the weight room.