PEORIA, Ariz. — When Hunter Strickland talks about his fresh start in 2019, it’s about more than changing teams and leagues.
The new Mariners’ reliever, who is the front-runner to replace Edwin Diaz as Seattle’s primary closer, has a closet-full of baggage he is trying to shed.
Mention Strickland’s name, and chances are you’ll think of one of three things:
- The time he started screaming at Kansas City’s Salvador Perez in the 2014 World Series — after Perez scored on Omar Infante’s home run.
- The time in 2017 he started a brawl by hitting Bryce Harper with a pitch in apparent retribution for Harper staring at a home run 2½ years earlier, in the ’14 playoffs.