PEORIA, Ariz. — When you envision the speed and athleticism the Mariners hope to exploit on the basepaths (and elsewhere) this season, the image definitely does not include Nelson Cruz rumbling around the bases, trying to score from first on a double, as he did earlier this week in Glendale, Ariz.
Manager Scott Servais later joked that he and hitting coach Edgar Martinez watched in horror from the dugout as Cruz was waved around third, yelling, “Stay there! Stay there! No! No! Noooooo!”
Predictably, Cruz was thrown out by a Randy Johnson body length, and then comically gestured toward third-base coach Manny Acta, as if to say, “What the heck?