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View From New York: Wilson's futility for naught


If ever there was an example of the difference between frantic New York and undemonstrative Seattle, consider the case of Dan Wilson, the Mariners catcher. The Mariners will be trying to tie their series with the Yankees tonight with a player who hasn't had a hit since 1995 -- in the postseason, that is to say. Wilson had two hits against the Yankees in that epic Division Series and hasn't had one since, a total of 40 consecutive official at-bats, one of the great futility streaks in the history of baseball, postseason or otherwise. His career postseason average is .035, which somehow seems far worse than the .000 he carries this year. For all the outs, nobody in Seattle is pushing the panic button, or even paying much attention to Wilson's predicament, presumably because it's not polite to dwell on such things. In the Bronx part of the world, if a Yankee were having such a postseason slump, the tabloid headlines would be blaring vicious insults. Back in cloudy and calm Seattle, there is not even an outpouring of civic grief or the formation of support groups. Wilson himself seems to be holding up under the five-year slump with no visible tics. "It's been a long stretch," Wilson admitted, after going 0-for-3 in Sunday's marathon victory. "But you just have to keep going." Wilson said there is no anxiety hanging over his life. Friends are not clustering around his front door, leaving flowers or clucking with sympathy as he goes past. Maybe nobody knows. Maybe it's the kind of thing nobody discusses in public. Maybe it's bad manners to bring up such matters. By contrast, consider the outpouring for Gil Hodges back in Brooklyn in 1952, when that Dodgers idol finished the World Series 0-for-21. That was one of those Subway Series we keep hearing about. The Dodgers were playing the hated Yankees. And in the Borough of Churches, people were saying prayers, lighting candles, throwing coins into fountains, anything to try to get Hodges' bat untracked. Nothing like that is happening in Wilson's life, or so he insists. "People are concerned with the team," Wilson said. "Everybody's goal is to win games." He helps win games as a useful defensive player with the build of somebody who ought to be able to smite the ball into open spaces. He is 6-foot-3, weighs 202 pounds, and played high school quarterback and hockey goalie before concentrating on baseball at the University of Minnesota. Lou Piniella caught a glimpse of him in the Cincinnati system in the early 1990s and was happy when the Mariners got him in 1994. Wilson isn't even that bad a hitter during the regular season, with a career average of .262 and 66 homers. But in the postseason, he was 2-for-17 against the Yankees in 1995 and has been 0-for-everybody since. Zero- for-16 against Cleveland in the 1995 American League Championship Series. Zero-for-13 against Baltimore in the 1997 Division Series. Zero-for-3 against the White Sox in this year's Division Series. Zero-for-8 against the Yankees and counting. Piniella, who surely would have snapped if he had ever gone even a week without a hit, has a theory why many hitters, whether Barry Bonds or Dan Wilson, suddenly veer south in the postseason: "You're playing better teams. You're facing better pitchers." Wilson says he tries not to let the streak hurt his defense. "It's frustrating," he said. "A couple of times, I could have driven in a run." All catchers, whether great defensive players like Johnny Bench or more average catchers like Mike Piazza, have to learn not to take their offensive troubles behind home plate. "You have to separate the two," Wilson said Sunday, when he started because Joe Oliver, with whom Wilson platoons, had a strained quadriceps. "There are two sides to baseball, and it's even more so for catchers." Wilson actually stroked a booming fly ball his first time up Sunday, but it was easily caught by Bernie Williams in center field, near the warning track in front of the 405-foot sign. Wilson had two infield grounders and a walk, his second in the series. He also has one run batted in, a sacrifice fly against Chicago. He did drive in a run against the Yankees in 1995. Maybe he is due. At any rate, back home in Seattle, there was no civic gnashing of teeth, nor any great outcry of fear and trembling. Yankee fans will make up for this yawning lack of awareness. Being such considerate souls, more than a few of denizens of the Stadium are sure to console Wilson before the night is out.

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