Franklin talks frankly about role
PEORIA, Ariz. — Ryan Franklin started for the Seattle Mariners on Thursday in their spring training opener. He expects to do the same during the regular season.
Franklin pitched two scoreless innings in the Mariners’ 5-4 victory in their annual charity game against the San Diego Padres.
The right-hander gave up a single to Khalil Green in the second and hit Dave Roberts to lead off the game, but those were the only two base runners against him.
“I’m a starter as far as I’m concerned,” Franklin said. “Nobody has told me that I’m in the bullpen. I don’t know. It’s just what people have told me they’ve read in the papers and stuff.”
Franklin, who will be 32 on Saturday, has been both a starter and a reliever in his five previous seasons with Seattle, but he’s been exclusively a starter the past two years.
In 2004, he struggled through a 4-16 season with a 4.90 ERA in 32 starts. He was 11-13 with a 3.57 ERA in 32 starts in 2003.
Franklin said new manager Mike Hargrove and pitching coach Bryan Price haven’t told him anything about being switched to the bullpen.
“I don’t see why I wouldn’t be a starter,” he said. “I pitched a lot of innings and I had just as good of numbers as anybody in the starting rotation that was here all year. I went out there every day.
“Why have I pitched 2 1/2 years as a starter and now I’m going to the bullpen?” he asked.
Price said the Mariners are considering last year’s five starting pitchers – Joel Pineiro, Jamie Moyer, Gil Meche, Bobby Madritsch and Franklin – and newcomers Aaron Sele and Jorge Campillo for the rotation this season. In addition, 18-year-old minor league sensation Felix Hernandez also “is on the periphery.”
“So that’s possibly eight guys we are considering as starting pitchers,” Price said. “So I think the media goes, ‘OK, Franklin’s the odd guy out.’ I don’t know of anybody that said Franklin’s going to the bullpen.”
The Padres took a 2-0 lead in the fifth on Jon Knott’s two-run homer off Ron Villone.
But the Mariners came back in the sixth to take the lead 3-2 on Raul Ibanez’s RBI single and rookie Jeremy Reed’s two-run single off Michael Brunet, a non-roster invitee who was the losing pitcher.
Seattle made it 5-2 in the sixth on Scott Spiezio’s RBI double and Willie Bloomquist’s run-scoring single.
Notes
The Mariners signed right-handed pitcher Jorge Campillo and placed him on their 40-man roster. Campillo had been invited to spring training by the team. He takes the roster place of left-hander Travis Blackley, who was placed on the 60-day DL. Blackley had surgery in February to repair a torn labrum in his pitching shoulder.