Tom Glavine was nervous, Dan Haren was happy – and Barry Zito was unable to finish the first inning. Three big-name pitchers made their spring training debuts Saturday, with vastly different results.
Making his first start for Atlanta in six years, Glavine threw 30 pitches in two innings during the Braves’ 7-5 victory over the Houston Astros at Kissimmee, Fla. He struck out two and gave up a solo homer to Ty Wigginton.
The 41-year-old left-hander pitched for the Braves from 1987-2002 and won two NL Cy Young Awards before spending five seasons with the New York Mets. He got a loud ovation from the many Atlanta fans at Houston’s ballpark, and suddenly this was more than just a relaxed, run-of-the-mill outing at spring training.
“Once that happened, yeah, I started to get nervous,” said Glavine, who has 303 career wins. “Up until that point, I was kind of like, OK, just go out there and pitch. Don’t worry about it. Just get your feet under you. When I got the nice ovation, I was like, all right, now I want to go out there and do a little bit better than just getting comfortable.”
Haren looked comfortable in his Diamondbacks debut, throwing two innings in Arizona’s 12-8 loss to the Chicago White Sox at Tucson, Ariz.
The right-hander, acquired from Oakland in a multiplayer trade this offseason, gave up one run and five hits while striking out four. He threw 28 of 38 pitches for strikes, and that’s what he’ll take away from his first outing in Sedona Red.
“I was throwing a lot of strikes, which was a goal of mine,” said Haren, who was 15-9 with a 3.07 ERA last year. “I gave up a few hits, but that’s part of spring training, figuring out how to get guys out with two strikes.
“Overall, I went out there and my arm feels great, which it doesn’t always this early in spring training,” he said. “It feels really loose and strong.”
Zito also felt good, though he didn’t look it.
A big-money bust in his first season with San Francisco, the left-hander managed only two outs Saturday against his former team in Scottsdale, Ariz. He gave up eight runs and seven hits as the Oakland Athletics got off to a huge start in a 23-5 rout of the Giants.
Zito, the 2002 AL Cy Young Award winner with Oakland, shrugged off the ugly outing. He said he felt good, and that was the important thing.
“If I look at it from how my body feels, it was all right,” said Zito, who threw 44 pitches. “It was about getting back on the mound in a game situation and keeping the ball down. My fastball was down for the most part. I kept my change down except for a couple of bad ones. Except for the leadoff double, those were good pitches down. They were hitting it where it was pitched.”
Zito walked two and did not strike out a batter. He went 11-13 with a 4.53 ERA last season after leaving Oakland to sign a $126 million, seven-year contract with the Giants. At the time, it was the richest deal ever for a pitcher.
“Spring training can only get better,” Zito said. “Obviously, the fans get all fired up and that’s good to see.”
At Port St. Lucie, Fla., Ryan Church sustained a concussion in a violent collision with New York Mets teammate Marlon Anderson and will be sidelined at least a couple of days.
Church and Anderson crashed into each other in shallow right field while chasing Andruw Jones’ fourth-inning popup during New York’s 1-0 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers, the latest injuries for the Mets this spring.
First baseman Carlos Delgado has a sore right hip and returned to New York for an MRI, which was negative. He will sit out for a couple of days.
A woozy Church, the team’s new right fielder, was helped off the field and won’t play again until he is free of concussion symptoms, the Mets said.
“He was OK. He was just stunned,” Mets manager Willie Randolph said.
Anderson, a pinch-hitting specialist who was playing first base, walked off under his own power. He has a bruised sternum and is day to day.
“It’s always a little scary when you see stuff like that,” Randolph said. “It’s hold your breath for a second, but I think Marlon might be OK.”
The Mets are struggling with injuries. Carlos Beltran, Damion Easley, Endy Chavez, Luis Castillo and Ben Johnson are among the position players who haven’t played in a Grapefruit League game yet due to aches and pains.
Dodgers ace Brad Penny threw 38 pitches in two scoreless innings, striking out two.
In other news, Cincinnati shortstop Alex Gonzalez will probably will miss the start of the season with a broken left knee.
Washington pitcher Shawn Hill had an MRI after complaining of tightness in his right forearm. The test on Friday showed no evidence of a tendon tear or swelling, and the injury is being treated as overuse syndrome, the team said. Nationals manager Manny Acta said Hill would seek a second opinion Sunday at Duke University.
In other spring training games:
Yankees 9, Phillies 3
At Clearwater, Fla., Alex Rodriguez hit his first home run this spring and Shelley Duncan boosted his bid for playing time with a homer and five RBIs.
Reds 12, Pirates 11
At Sarasota, Fla., Ken Griffey Jr. and Adam Dunn homered in the first inning off Zach Duke for Cincinnati.
Indians 3, Tigers 3, 10 innings
At Lakeland, Fla., Cleveland ace C.C. Sabathia and Detroit newcomer Dontrelle Willis made their first spring appearances as opposing starters. Both left-handers worked two innings. Willis allowed one run and three hits, while Sabathia gave up two runs and five hits.
Marlins 3, Cardinals 2
At Jupiter, Fla., Todd Wellemeyer and Brad Thompson combined to pitch five scoreless innings for St. Louis. Wellemeyer, Thompson and Anthony Reyes are competing for the final two spots in the rotation.
Orioles 4, Nationals 1
At Viera, Fla., Daniel Cabrera pitched three scoreless innings, and Scott Moore homered and drove in three runs to lead Baltimore.
Rays 5, Blue Jays 2
At St. Petersburg, Fla., Tampa Bay outfielder Rocco Baldelli, sidelined most of last season because of a hamstring injury, went 0-for-2 in his first major league action since May 15.
Red Sox 7, Twins 6
At Fort Myers, Fla., Jon Lester wasn’t as sharp as the last time he took the mound. Lester, the winning pitcher for Boston in the 2007 World Series clincher, walked four of the nine batters he faced in his first spring start. He gave up five runs – four earned – and got only three outs.
Rockies 6, Brewers 3
At Tucson, Ariz., Ben Sheets needed only 16 pitches to get through two perfect innings for Milwaukee.
Angels 6, Cubs 2
At Tempe, Ariz., Jered Weaver allowed one hit in two scoreless innings and Torii Hunter homered for Los Angeles.
Padres 11, Mariners 10
At Peoria, Ariz., Felix Hernandez pitched two scoreless innings in his spring debut for Seattle. Randy Wolf allowed three runs and three hits in his San Diego debut while getting just two outs.
Rangers 15, Royals 7
At Surprise, Ariz., Kevin Mench homered for Texas and Vicente Padilla tossed two scoreless innings.
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