Around the horn: Angel worries serious injuries will strike other Japanese pitchers

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Shigetoshi Hasegawa, the Angels' hard-working reliever, had some interesting comments about the durability of Japanese pitchers.

Hasegawa led American League relievers last year with 96 innings pitched. Now he is on the disabled list with a shoulder injury. The Angels feared he had a torn rotator cuff that would require season-ending surgery, but Dr. Lewis Yocum determined that Hasegawa wouldn't have to go under the knife. He'll begin a strengthening program the Angels hope will allow him to return this month.

Hasegawa doesn't believe his workload was excessive last season, but he told the Los Angeles Times he worries about Japanese pitchers who follow him to the major leagues. He believes they may be susceptible to arm injuries because Japanese teams don't use specialized strength and flexibility exercises, as they do in the major leagues. Also, he said, Japanese amateur teams require star pitchers to throw as many as 200 pitches on three consecutive days.

"I've got to tell the Japanese people that's too much," he told the Times. "I don't want to see Japanese pitchers come over to the U.S. and, after a year, everybody is done."

Anderson gives M's sparky plug

Sparky Anderson is one of the few men on earth who can relate to what Mariner Manager Lou Piniella is experiencing - both the thrill and pressure of Seattle's early dominance.

Retired in Southern California after a brief stint broadcasting Angel games, Anderson admits he rarely watches baseball.

"It's like one thing ended and now I have a new life," he said in a phone interview from his Thousand Oaks home.

But Anderson, who underwent successful heart bypass surgery two years ago and was inducted into the Hall of Fame last summer, is well aware of the Mariners' early success. They are the first team to approach the torrid start of his 1984 Tigers, who jumped out to a 35-5 record en route to a World Series title.

Anderson, 67, has often said, however, that '84 was his most emotionally draining and traumatic season, because Detroit's early lead made people believe that a title was a foregone conclusion. He says he was never able to relax, constantly fretting that the Tigers would squander their lead.

"It will be a great year for Seattle," Anderson said. "Any time you can get off like that, it gives tremendous confidence to the players. They feel like they can win. The trouble is, they feel they should win every day. And there's nothing wrong with that."

Except for the mental burden that comes with such a mindset. "It's there, because now you have to win," he said. "When you get out like that, and get a lead like they have, you're automatically expected to win."

Anderson hopes Piniella can relax. "Lou is outstanding," he said. "The Mariners play great baseball, and if they keep doing that, they're going to win. They have what it takes."

Will fans say boo for A-Rod Return Two?

Alex Rodriguez makes the second of his three trips to Seattle - four, if you count the All-Star Game - Monday, and this three-game series with the Rangers figures to fall well short of his initial return in April for emotional intensity. Heck, the Mariners haven't even felt the need to drag out the Safeco Field Code of Conduct.

Since last we saw them, the Rangers have fired their manager, Johnny Oates, demoted supposed rising star Ruben Mateo to the minors, and continued to rack up some of the worst pitching statistics in the history of the game while falling a staggering 22 games off the pace in the American League West through Friday.

Last time in, Seattle fans eloquently let their feelings toward Rodriguez be known with constant, raucous booing that greeted his every move. But unlike Minnesota fans, whose boorish behavior toward Chuck Knoblauch nearly cost the Twins a forfeit victory to the Yankees, they managed to express their dissatisfaction in a mannerly and civil fashion - a bearing that was mutual, as it turned out.

It will be interesting to see if A-Rod's decision to remain on the high road, staunchly praising Seattle and its fans while refusing to criticize them for their hostile reaction, evinces any sort of sympathy or moderation at Safeco.

At this point, the feeling may be that playing for the Rangers is punishment enough.