Mariners Notebook: Ichiro shakes it off

Ichiro Suzuki was back in the lineup Monday -- albeit as designated hitter -- a little more than 24 hours after putting a scare into Mariners fans when he was hit near the knee by a pitch.

Manager John McLaren had just finished his morning coffee run Monday at about 10 a.m. when he got a call from head trainer Rick Griffin that the All-Star outfielder was a little sore but otherwise OK and wanted to play.

"That was a nice good morning for me," McLaren said.

Ichiro was struck on the outside of his leg just above his right knee Sunday by a fifth-inning pitch by Detroit fireballer Justin Verlander. Ichiro limped to first base and was removed from the game. X-rays showed no damage, but the Mariners were holding their collective breath to find out whether the injury would force him out of action.

Before Monday's game, a bruise was evident in the area of Ichiro's lower quadriceps, and he admitted being sore, but he was walking normally.

Ichiro has started every game for the Mariners this season, 87 in center field and three at DH. He has played in 490 of the Mariners' past 491 games, including a club-record 396 in a row. In 6 1/2 years as a Mariner, Ichiro has missed only one game because of injury. That was in April 2002, after he cut his leg running into a concrete wall at Safeco Field.

McLaren said his staff sat down and mapped out a plan to get Ichiro a few days off in the coming months, but there was no getting him out of the lineup Monday.

"He wanted to play center field today, but I just felt like with everything he's been through this week, with the All-Star Game and those festivities, to the contract negotiations, the press conference, him getting hit ... I think it was a good time for him to DH and catch his breath," McLaren said. "It was a scare for us, but he feels real good."

Ichiro quickly showed his legs were working fine, leading off the first inning with a double and, after a failed sacrifice bunt attempt by Jose Lopez, stealing third.

So was Ichiro trying to send a message with the early stolen base? He was, but it wasn't a message about his own health. He said it was a message about the Lopez bunt attempt, which the second baseman did on his own without a sign from the dugout.

"The fact that he wanted to do that was something I thought was very big for this team," Ichiro said. "A player that does not have much experience tried to do something, and he showed that he understood how important today's game was. Although the bunt did not go well, I wanted to do something to show a feeling of appreciation for that play.

"I thought what he attempted to do was not only big for today, but also big for the future of this team."

KEEPING THEM HONEST: When Curtis Granderson steals a base against you, that's just part of the game. But when Sean Casey does it, that's a sign that something might be wrong.

The Tigers swiped five bags against the Mariners on Sunday, and the blame fell not to catcher Jamie Burke but to the pitchers who he said weren't holding the Detroit runners in check.

"They have to learn that early in their careers, so as minor league coaches you're always pounding on the kids," pitching coach Rafael Chaves said. "Pitching is not only throwing the ball to the plate. It has a lot to do with fielding your position and being able to hold runners on base, and that's a big part of our preparation."

Pitchers have several responsibilities to keep opponents from stealing, and the first is being quick to the plate. The Mariners don't want to see a span of more than 1.35 seconds between the pitcher beginning his motion and the ball popping in the catcher's mitt.

In addition to throwing over to an occupied base, a pitcher can use head fakes to make a runner think he's going to. The pitcher also must vary his routine, sometimes going into the windup immediately after coming set, other times pausing. They don't want the runner to be able to count on exactly when it's safe to take off.

"You don't want to be predictable, otherwise you have problems," Chaves said.

When a pitcher is devoting so much concentration to the coming pitch, the other responsibilities can be tough to keep in mind. But a gentle prodding from the coaches after a five-steal game is usually enough to do the trick.

"I think sometimes it's just a matter of a mental error, just not holding the runner as close as you should," reliever Eric O'Flaherty said.

"I think we've done a really good job for the most part this year. From time to time that's going to happen, guys are just going to steal some bases on you. I don't think it's anything to worry about."

"Some guys you just don't expect to run on you, and you get caught off guard," reliever Sean Green said. "There's definitely certain base runners where you have a greater level of awareness when they get out there. But sometimes guys you don't think would take off take off, and even the catcher's not paying that much attention to them. At the end of the day you have to make your pitch and get the out at home. That's your priority, and it takes care of everything."

THAT'S AN ORDER: The Mariners have used 56 different lineups in 90 games, so it's not as if the batting order is a sacred cow that can't be messed with. Still, with the team playing well, McLaren didn't want to do a massive overhaul when he took over after Mike Hargrove's July 1 resignation.

McLaren said he's beginning to assert his influence over the lineup, and Monday pushed red-hot Adrian Beltre up to the No. 5 spot while dropping ice-cold Richie Sexson to No. 6.

"I told him, if you keep swinging the bat you're going up," McLaren said of Beltre, who entered play Monday with a .500 average and 13 RBIs in his previous nine games.

NOTES: The Mariners on Sunday celebrated eight years at Safeco Field, and over that span they have the third-most home victories (375) in the AL, trailing only Oakland (406) and New York (405). ... Jose Guillen entered Monday's game with a .405 average against left-handers, the second highest in the AL behind Detroit's Magglio Ordonez (.408).