Who will get Opening Day start?

01/23/2006
Who do you think Mike Hargrove will send to the mound on Opening Day? Felix Hernandez has the stuff to be the ace of the staff but that would be putting a lot of pressure on him at such a young age. So will it be the crafty Jamie Moyer or do you think Hargrove will go with Jarrod Washburn as the No. 1 man in the rotation in 2006?-- Ryan R., Salem, Ore.
I think it'll be Moyer for the second straight year under Hargrove. The Mariners and I agree with you about Hernandez, that he's too young to take the ball on Opening Day and there's no rush. He'll get the same amount of starts as a No. 3 or No. 4 guy. Moyer's done it before and sets the tone for the staff with his professionalism. He also won 13 games last year and went 10-0 at home, so he's earned it.
I saw Hernandez's name on the World Baseball Classic roster. Is that an error? Or is he playing for Venezuela?-- Edward P., Seattle
His name is on Venezuela's preliminary roster, but that doesn't mean he's definitely playing in the tournament. It just means Venezuela had to put his name there now if there is going to be any chance of Hernandez playing. The Mariners are waiting to hear the results of an objection they filed to keep Hernandez out of the Classic. We will find out soon enough if their objection worked.
My son was a big fan of the "Little Unit," Ryan Anderson, when he pitched in Double-A at New Haven and was a top Mariners prospect. We followed his many injuries and then he disappeared. Can you tell us what happened to him?-- Bill H., Fairfield, Conn.
The Mariners released Anderson last year and he ended up in the Milwaukee Brewers organization. He pitched as high as advanced Class A last year, compiling an 0-1 record and a 6.30 ERA for the Brevard County Manatees of the Florida State League.
Is Willie Bloomquist going to get an opportunity to start for the Mariners?-- Dean R., Vancouver, BC
Absolutely. I don't think Hargrove is the type of guy to guarantee anything to anyone, and while Jose Lopez is the favorite to start at second base, he still has a lot of work to do offensively and defensively. If Bloomquist has a great spring and Lopez doesn't, it's possible that Bloomquist could start or that non-roster invitee Fernando Vina could sneak into the mix. And then there's always the injury possibility, which could create even more time for Bloomquist.
What ever happened to former Mariners second basemen Joey Cora? I lived in Seattle around the time he played and since then I haven't heard anything about him.-- Christian B., Philadelphia
Joey Cora, a great little baseball player in his day, retired after splitting the 1998 season between the Mariners and Cleveland Indians. He didn't waste much time getting back into the game, coaching in 2000 with Class A Daytona in the Chicago Cubs organization and serving as the general manager of Caguas in the Puerto Rican Winter League from 1999-2001. Cora spent 2001 and 2002 as the manager of advanced-rookie Kingsport of the Appalachian League in the New York Mets organization and spent 2003 in the Montreal Expos system as the manager of Class A Savannah in the South Atlantic League before taking the job as the third-base coach for the Chicago White Sox in 2004. That job culminated with a World Series ring last year.
Are the Mariners going to take a look at Jeff Weaver? He is no longer a Dodger.-- Joe B., Hibbing, Minn.
Weaver indeed is no longer a member of the Dodgers. He's a free agent and probably the best available starting pitcher left on the market after a 14-win season in Los Angeles. That said, it would be stunning if the Mariners signed him. Weaver is represented by agent Scott Boras, who also has Kevin Millwood (five years, $60 million from the Rangers) and Jarrod Washburn (four years, $37.5 million from the Mariners). Boras has made no secret of the fact that Weaver is probably be looking for somewhere around four years and $40 million, numbers that are way above anything the Mariners want to be involved with at this point in the offseason.
I like reading the mailbag. Is it featured on a regular basis on the Mariners Web site, like once or twice a month? Also is there an archive to go to if I miss it?-- Maureen K., Olympia, Wash.
The mailbag is a weekly feature during the offseason and in Spring Training, running every Monday. During the regular season, it won't be featured as much or on such a regular basis, but it will pop up from time to time. To find old mailbags, go to the news archive under the "News" pulldown on the club site homepage. Then you can search through past months of every season since 2001.

Source: http://seattle.mariners.mlb.com/