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Wilson discovers batting stroke
Catcher tries to get something going for M's

There wasn't a bright side, but for Dan Wilson, at least there wasn't a dark side, like has so often happened in the past. As Wilson pointed out, the Mariners lost to the Yankees last night in Game 2 of the AL Championship Series, so the fact that he threw out two runners and banged out two hits did not really matter to him. "I don't put stock in individual things," the Mariners catcher said. "It's about the team winning, and contributing to that. It's no fun to get a couple hits and lose the ballgame." Wilson tried to get the Mariners going, as well as the fans at Safeco Field, hoping to build momentum with a memorable at-bat in the second inning. With Stan Javier at first and two outs, Wilson battled Mike Mussina to a standoff. With the count 2-and-2, Wilson fouled off pitch after pitch, creating more excitement the longer he stayed alive. "I saw a lot of pitches, and the crowd got into it," Wilson said. "I finally got a fastball I could do something with." Wilson lined it into right field.
In the seventh inning, Wilson also singled to right off reliever Ramiro Mendoza. In the ninth, Al Martin pinch hit for Wilson, who finished his night with a third of the Mariners' hits, going 2-for-3. For Ichiro, it would be a typical game. For Wilson, it was not, particularly this time of year when the leaves are falling, and so is his average. Wilson is the major leagues' worst hitter in the postseason. Entering the Cleveland series, Wilson was 3-for-60 in the playoffs, finding air far more frequently than horsehide with his swings. Wilson tried to concentrate on being effective behind the plate, working with the pitchers and remembering that his defense could win as many games as his offense. But his lack of productivity bothered him, nonetheless. "Baseball can eat you up, if you let it," he said. "I didn't contribute the way I wanted to." Against the Indians, Wilson picked up three hits in 15 at-bats, an improvement from the past. But then in Game 1 of the ALCS, he went 0-for-3 against Andy Pettitte, and the usual slide seemed to be forming again. He was, after all, 1-for-30 in ALCS history entering the Yankees' series.
But this isn't the old Dan Wilson. After hitting .235 during the 2000 season, Wilson worked with part-time hitting coach Lee Elia in Arizona, and became more consistent with his swing. In his first spring training game, he hit a homer and double, and impressed Elia with his work ethic. During the regular season, Wilson batted .265, helping pad offensive statistics that have made him the best catcher in Mariners history. Last night, Wilson also set a defensive tone, throwing out two would-be base stealers, Chuck Knoblauch in the second and Tino Martinez in the sixth. Customarily, Wilson did not want to talk about Wilson, preferring to comment about Freddy Garcia and the team, as well as the challenge ahead at Yankee Stadium. Asked about manager Lou Piniella's guarantee that the Mariners would be returning to Safeco Field for a Game 6, Wilson said: "If we go to New York and play the type of baseball we're used to playing, he's right, we'll be back."

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Mariners Notebook: Quake's tremors reach to Peoria
Players recall '96 Kingdome rumble, follow story on TV

PEORIA, Ariz. -- All those images flooding the TV screens in the Mariners' spring training clubhouse yesterday brought back vivid memories for Dan Wilson. Wilson was in the on-deck circle in May of 1996 when an earthquake struck Seattle. It was "only" a 5.4 magnitude quake, a mere blip when compared to yesterday's 6.8 temblor. But it was not insignificant. "I looked up, and all the Kingdome speakers were starting to swing," Wilson said. "Then you heard the sound of all those people getting up and the seats starting to rumble." Wilson lives in Seattle area year-round now, as do several Mariners, including Jay Buhner, Edgar Martinez, Jeff Nelson, David Bell, Rob Ramsay, Aaron Sele, John Olerud and Jamie Moyer. It was difficult for many of the players to tear themselves away from the TV coverage, except to attempt to call home. With power down in some areas of Puget Sound and telephone lines working only sporadically, the players had trouble calling home to check on injuries and damage. "That (1996) quake was the first one I'd ever been in, and it seemed scary," Wilson said. "It was a strange sensation. But from what I'm seeing on the television, this one seems a lot more powerful and damaging." The May 2, 1996 earthquake caused the game against the Indians to be suspended in the bottom of the seventh inning.. The game was continued the next day after the Kingdome was checked for damage.

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