This is Mariners manager Mike Hargrove talking serious baseball business. Injuries, lineups, this and that as part of usual pre-game session with reporters. What you don’t see is the silliness that went on before this. Example: Julio Mateo and Ichiro Suzuki spent the afternoon arguing about who has the better wardrobe. Mateo’s arguement was that Ichiro has to get his clothes for free otherwise he would not wear those ugly garments. Ichiro answered (through a translator) that Mateo looks bad in whatever he wears and refused to let him touch his clothing. Mateo offered to dress like Ichiro if the outfielder chose to dress like him. Ichiro laughed. So did everybody in the clubhouse. What you also don’t see is the friendly ribbing Mariners pitcher Joel Pineiro gave reliever Eddie Guardado. Pineiro stopped me in the  dugout and then asked me if I thought Guardado looked like a sea lion because of his whiskers. I did not say a word, which in Pineiro’s mind proved his point. Guardado just laughed but said he would get him later….

Edgar Renteria, Orlando Cabrera and Shakira

Welcome to Texas

This is the first time I have seen the Phillies play this season…not counting on television and during Spring Training. The roster is filled with a bunch of good guys and good players. It’s too bad that few outside of Philly or the baseball world have heard of them. What’s gonna happen to Aaron Rowand? He won World Series with the White Sox and was the toast of Chi-town. Is he gonna vanish from the spotlight now that he is with the Phillies? I talked to Jimmy Rollins and Bobby Abreau about the subject, about being underrated and not being household names despite putting up great numbers. Abreau’s face said it all. He just had a puzzled look and then he said he can’t explain why Philly players don’t get the love they deserve. Rollins was more blunt, saying it was the market. Being crammed with Boston, New York and now D.C., Philly just does not compete in terms of popularity. He asked me to name a Phillies star other than Mike Schmidt. Being I work in baseball, I could have done so, but I understood what he was saying. .."Baseball players get no love in Philly."…Maybe if/when Philly gets to the playoffs and wins, the city and the players will be recognized. Who knows? All I know is that club has some pretty good players and I’m not sure a lot of people know that.

This is Moises Lopez from the Bronx. You might not know him, but virtually every Latino baseball star does. Call him the barber to the stars. He works for Jordan Sports Barber Shop a stones throw away from Yankee Stadium and can be spotted at Shea when the Mets are in town and at Yankee Stadium when the Yanks are in town doing his thing. He cuts everybody’s hair. I mean everybody. Manny Ramirez, David Ortiz, Albert Pujols, Alex Rodriguez…the list goes on and on. Players go to his shop on offdays for a special cut. Yes, he’s that good. He says he never gets nervous with his big league clients, but admits he would get anxious if his idol Michael Jordan ever walked into his shop. He named the shop after Jordan. He even named his two kids after the basketball star. …Michael and Jordan….no kidding.
Go see Moises at 1354 Edward L. Grant Highway and you just might run into your favorite player.

I think I just saw Lionel Ritchie

Here’s a photo of Rangers Spanish broadcaster Eleno Ornelas, Red Sox infielder Alex Cora and myself speaking to class from UMASS-Lowell at Fenway Park about the influence of Latinos on baseball. I spoke with Cora less than an hour after this photo for this story on Red Sox.com. Here is the Spanish version.

That’s Mets third baseman David Wright and actor Joe Gannascoli goofing around before a game at Shea. Gannascoli plays Vito on HBO’s Sopranos and seems like genuinely nice guy. I don’t watch Sopranos often, particularly during the baseball season, but from what I heard Gannascoli’s character is in a lot of trouble. I won’t see the episode. I’m at Shea watching real drama — Mets fans vs. Yankees fans.