Sweeney gets career reprieve

Grounded firmly in reality, Mike Sweeney figured his major league career was probably over last fall.

If he went through with his second double knee surgery in less than five months, then endured up to a year of rehabilitation, the 35-year-old designated hitter had little hope of coming back for his 15th big league season.

"I was sitting with my wife (Shara) and I told her, 'Baby, I'm about 98 percent done,' " Sweeney said.

Fast forward to Saturday at Cashman Field, where the Colorado Rockies beat Sweeney's Seattle Mariners 6-5 in the teams' spring training finale.

Sweeney didn't play Saturday, but went 1-for-4 Friday to finish the spring with a .408 average (20-for-49), 11 RBIs in 15 games, a six-game hitting streak -- and a spot on the team after being a nonroster invitee to spring training.

It looks as if the five-time All-Star made the right decision to skip the second surgery in October. He had undergone arthroscopic surgery on both knees June 11, essentially ending his season with the Oakland Athletics.

A few days before his scheduled microfracture surgery on both knees in October, Sweeney decided to pass on it after doctors told him the procedure would be career ending.

Given a reprieve that came with no guarantees, Sweeney turned his attention to healing his knees and finding a team to play for; he had been released by the A's in September.

"I did rehab and got a series of gel shots in the knees, and I started to feel better," Sweeney said. "The phone started ringing in January, and I told my wife that 2 percent chance of me playing was going to happen."

Sweeney, who batted .286 in 42 games with Oakland after spending his first 13 seasons with the Kansas City Royals, signed a minor league contract with the Mariners. If he didn't make the major league team, he would retire, he said.

His results this spring have assured Sweeney he still can play, and he said his knees are close to 100 percent.

"I feel I can do everything I did on the baseball field a few years ago," said Sweeney, a career .299 hitter who batted .340 in 2002 and had 144 RBIs in 2000. "Hopefully I can continue to stay healthy and help this team out."

Sweeney and fellow veteran Ken Griffey Jr. have made a positive impact in the clubhouse for the Mariners, who finished 61-101 last year.

"They've been phenomenal," manager Don Wakamatsu said. "They're both very instrumental in implementing what we're trying to do here."

Mariners left-hander Ryan Rowland-Smith, who started Saturday, said the veterans have made a "huge, huge difference" in team chemistry.

"Ken Griffey Jr., no matter if you're the bat boy or the franchise CEO, he'll talk to you the same way," Rowland-Smith said. "He's all about making sure everybody's on the same page, and it's the same with Mike Sweeney.

"I had a tough outing in camp, and (Sweeney) doesn't know me from a bar of soap, but he sat down with me and we had a great talk, and it really helped me out. Those are guys I look up to and respect."

The right-handed hitting Sweeney will see action at designated hitter and first base, where left-handed-hitting Russell Branyan will start.

Wakamatsu, who was Oakland's bench coach last season, said Sweeney is "in much better shape" this year and "his knees look fine."

"He's looked as good as I've seen him," Wakamatsu said. "We've played him a lot this spring, he's run a lot of bases, and he feels as good as he's felt in a long time."

After staring down the end of his career, Sweeney said he has a newfound outlook on the game.

"When you're so close to never playing the game you love again ... it gives you a chance to reassess your perspectives and really appreciate the gift of playing Major League Baseball," he said.

• NOTES -- Kenji Johjima went 3-for-3 with a double and homer, Yuniesky Betancourt went 2-for-3 with a homer and Griffey Jr. added an RBI single for Seattle ... A crowd of 7,472 attended Saturday, bringing the two-day attendance to 13,693.

Contact reporter Todd Dewey at tdewey@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0354.