The first pitch of their 2018 season was hours away from even being fired by Felix Hernandez when the Mariners had to make a late lineup adjustment because of a minor injury.
Just after the Mariners began to take batting practice, a club official announced that starting catcher Mike Zunino had been scratched from the starting lineup because of minor stiffness in his right side.
Zunino apparently felt it on his final swing of batting practice during Wednesday’s workout at Safeco Field. The Mariners don’t believe the issue is serious. With an offday on Friday, the team decided to be cautious and gave Zunino the night off to rest.