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M's lead with four quiet guys
Respect: Edgar, Wilson, Olerud and Bell don't say much, and don't need to

PEORIA, Ariz. - They represent the heart of the lineup- the starting catcher, third baseman, first baseman and designated hitter - and all most people know about Dan Wilson, David Bell, John Olerud and Edgar Martinez is the obvious.
They're quiet.
The Toronto Blue Jays once had an entire ad campaign built around Olerud - who spoke one word in the spots. In the newest Mariners campaign, the funniest ad may be the one featuring Martinez, who speaks two lines. In a Seattle Mariners clubhouse that has become an international melting pot, Martinez, Olerud, Wilson and Bell are among the four most esteemed players. Ask any one of them about themselves and a reporter need not click his ballpoint - there won't be much said.
How quiet are these guys?
"I've had the locker next to Olerud for more than a month now," Norm Charlton said. "And we haven't gotten past the 'Morning, John. Morning, Norm' stage. "With these guys, it's like the dog that barks doesn't bite - it's the dog that doesn't bark that's figuring out how to take a hunk out of you."
Meet the dogs who don't bark.
THE QUIET STORM
"David Bell is a no BS guy," Jay Buhner said. "He's a gamer, and he might be the feistiest guy in the clubhouse. If you do something he doesn't like, he'll tell you about it. He'll be in your face." "I was in my first spring camp with his father, Buddy," Charlton said. "They're the same kind of player. They just do it, they don't want to talk about it." "He's very intense, he just doesn't let you see it on his face," Martinez said. This spring, Bell was ejected in a charity game with the San Deigo Padres for arguing balls and strikes, then walked the length of the Seattle dugout and ducked down into a small tunnel behind it. "He was throwing bats and helmets, all kinds of things down there," coach Gerald Perry said. "After a moment, Lou (Piniella) tells me 'Go quiet him down before he hurts himself.' "So I walked down there and things are still flying around and rather than walk into a bat or something I said, 'David, I'm coming in.' When I found him his chest was heaving - he was out of breath he'd thrown so much. I'm telling you, he's a quiet storm. He's the quietest red-ass you'll ever meet." Want a Bell secret? He's a telephone addict. "If I'm driving, I'm on the phone," Bell said. "I make 20-25 calls on an average day, to family, friends. I left home when I was 17, and I've tried to stay in touch with people that matter to me. I'm on the phone a lot."
THE HITTER
"Edgar is a workaholic. You have to start a conversation with Edgar, he doesn't start many," Buhner said. "He'll sit at his locker with a bat in his hands, listening, taking it all in. He watches, and once in a while he'll get into it just to get guys riled up and it's like a comedy show." "Edgar lights it up with his bat, not his personality," Carlos Baerga said. "He's always working or going through his routine or sitting quietly with a bat in his hand. He'll think before he says anything. "If you need help, Edgar is there. He helps a lot of people in Puerto Rico but never wants anyone to know about it." "Edgar looks like he's always thinking about hitting," Bell said. "I mean, maybe he's thinking about something else, but he looks like it's all about hitting and he's always got a bat in his hands." "The only time he opens his mouth is to help someone," Charlton said. "Edgar never complains about anything. He's always watching pitchers, and he'll tell them - you're tipping pitches doing this, you're not as deceptive doing that. He may not say much but he doesn't miss anything." Asked for something about Edgar the world might not know, Wilson thought for a moment and then beamed -"He's an internet junkie!" And so he is. "I like going on line and looking up information," Martinez admitted. "I might look up a lot of boating sites. I check out all the new health supplements and sometimes I can order them online. I like checking my e-mail." Whenever a Mariner buys a new laptop, he brings it to Martinez to program. Edgar often takes them home overnight, brings them back the next day ready. "I like computers," he said. Now you know.
THE SHADY CHARACTER
"Danny is the all-American boy," Buhner said. "Wilson always looks lost in thought. It's not that he doesn't have anything to say, it's just he's thinking," Charlton said. "He has no problem stepping up and saying something if he thinks it needs to be said." "He's a very bright guy, and he always has accurate information," Martinez said. "About anything." "Danny had a tough year last season, and I think you always learn a little more about people when they're struggling than when they're on top of the world," Olerud said. "Danny handled last season so well. I've had down years, and it's hard not to bring it into the clubhouse. Dan never did. He just kept working." "Dan Wilson is the nicest guy on the team, and that's saying a lot," Bell said. "Al Martin said the other day, 'Dan is even nicer than John.' and we laughed. He's like the guys I grew up with in the Midwest, just solid." Wilson and pitching coach Brian Price have an ongoing game they play in the dugout of every stadium. Whenever a song is played in the ballpark, the first one to name the artist gets a point. "He's a shady character," Price said. "He's big on the '70s and '80s, but he's started to cheat. The other day we were in the dugout when the anthem singer began singing. Dan looked at her name on the scoreboard, whispered it to me and said '1-0.' Now I ask you, can you trust a man who'd do that?" Wilson laughs when told the story. "I did that," he admitted. "You want to know why people love Danny?" Price said. "It's because he's been an All-Star who has always been grounded, and that's why people identify with him. He's a regular guy. He's the guy you'd love to have living next door."
THE WILD MAN
"We set our clocks by John," Buhner said. "When he walks in the clubhouse, you know you've got about 20 minutes before you have to be on the field. You've got guys in here who show up hours early to play cards, shoot the breeze, whatever. John shows up when it's time to work, period. Not a minute before." "John is the last guy at the park, always, and he's usually the last guy on the field," Carlos Baerga said. "Five minutes before the game, he may be in the clubhouse, still - then he goes out and just rakes." "I played with John in New York, and everyone tries to make John talk, but he hardly ever does. And he always has food with him, a cookie, a sandwich, something. I can't get away with that, but he can." By all accounts, Olerud eats like few others. "Five minutes before a game he'll be eating something," Bell said. "I like to eat, too, and the kitchen area in the clubhouse at Safeco might be my favorite part of the park, but I'll tell you this - every time I've been in there, John is in there. I think he can eat anything." Olerud has no trouble confessing to this. "I love to eat. Some guys can't eat and take the field, but I need something in my stomach all the time," he said. "I can eat all the time." It is also Wilson, the thinker, who comes up with some inside info on Olerud. "John is a gadget guy, anything and everything," Wilson said. "He loves gadgets." "I do like gadgets," Olerud said. "I mean, I've even got a compass on my wristwatch." "With Olerud, the number he wears on his back (5) is the number of words he plans on speaking during the season," Price said. "The funniest thing about John is, he has this image - and then he walks into the parking lot and hops in a black Porsche." "My theory is he has that car to help him avoid all human contact. He's at a stop sign, someone pulls up beside him and asks directions. John just takes off at 95 mph and doesn't have to say a word."

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