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| Mark Nelke |
Phelps brings his 'A' game when M's are the foe
If Josh Phelps could play against the Seattle Mariners every day, he'd likely be starting in Tuesday's All-Star Game, as well as being off to a Hall of Fame start to his career.
"I don't know, I've had some pretty good luck against them the last two years, three years," said Phelps, the former Lakeland High School and Prairie American Legion star, in a telephone interview from Toronto.
Forgive the 6-foot-3, 225-pound designated hitter for the Toronto Blue Jays for being a little sad to see the Mariners leave town last week.
In a three-game sweep of Seattle at SkyDome in Toronto, Phelps went 6 for 9, hitting three home runs, driving in 12 and scoring five times.
In Wednesday's 12-4 thrashing, Phelps hit two home runs, including a 435-foot grand slam which reached the fifth deck, and drove in seven runs.
"I think it might be the fact all the games go local back there in Idaho, and I have to have my 'A' game on," said Phelps, who grew up watching the M's (and Braves) on TV in Rathdrum. "You always want to bring your 'A' game if you know everybody's watching."
NOT EVERYBODY was watching, but many of Phelps' family and friends were on hand when Toronto played in Seattle in early June. In the final game of a three-game series, Phelps hit a grand slam in the second inning to start the Blue Jays toward a 5-3 victory at Safeco Field.
"That was almost a relief," Phelps recalled. "I had struggled early in the series; I only had one hit up to that point. I had a ton of family over there. It was a relief; at least I know everybody got their money's worth."
The Mariners came into town at just the right time for Phelps, who had dropped to eighth in the order and was DH-ing only against left-handers. The Seattle series put him back in the lineup full-time, and helped him raise his average to .243.
"Sometimes you slump and sometimes you struggle and that's part of baseball," said Phelps, a 10th-round draft choice of Toronto in 1996, who has been with the big club since July 2002. "When you're struggling and you have teammates playing better you have to have enough respect to cheer them on. You just work harder, you prepare yourself for next time in the lineup. That's the only way you can work through a struggle."
PHELPS HASN'T caught since being called up from the minors. He's been mostly a DH, though he's played some first base this season, in road interleague games, and when Carlos Delgado was injured. He takes ground balls each day, just in case.
It's possible Phelps could be eligible for arbitration at the end of the season. Free agency is three years away. Right now he's just enjoying each day, having gotten married in January.
"Every day I'm thankful for what I do; I've been able to to do it for the last 2 1/2 years consistently," said Phelps, a career .269 hitter in the bigs. "It's something you don't take for granted, let's put it that way."
Mark Nelke is sports editor of the Press. He can be reached at 664-8176, Ext. 2019, or via
e-mail at mnelke@cdapress.com.
