Around the AL: Sexson swings and misses

Exercising his right through the standard appeal process, Seattle Mariners first baseman Richie Sexson had his suspension reduced from six games to five after charging the mound and igniting a melee in the fourth inning of Thursday night’s game against the Texas Rangers.

Sexson threw a batting helmet, but he wasn’t going to throw in the towel.

Sexson took exception to a Kason Gabbard fastball that he believed came a little too close to his head, though it appeared closer to the middle of the plate. He rushed Gabbard and fired his helmet, hitting the left-hander in the back, before catcher Gerald Laird tackled him. The ensuing pile-up caused Sexson to be ejected and Gabbard to leave the game shortly thereafter with general soreness.

“I thought that was bull,” Rangers manager Ron Washington said. “How tall is he, six-foot-13? Running at a little guy and throw a helmet, that's just frustration. The guy, he's a competitor; he's just frustrated.

“If we were trying to hit him, we would have hit him. If you go look at the replays, Gabbard didn't even come close. Sexson was just frustrated, and things got out of control. You look at the replay, that ball was over the middle of the plate. He overreacted.”

Sexson said he was braced for a retaliation after Mariners starter Felix Hernandez hit two Rangers earlier in the game — Laird and Ian Kinsler.

“I understood the situation, but there is a right way and a wrong way to play the game,” Sexson said. “If you hit me below the shoulders, I’m fine with that. I was well aware of the fact he probably was going to hit me. But get up near the face, and that's when you start talking about careers.

“Throw a pitch up around my head, I'm not going to deal with that. It's the wrong way to play baseball. I’ve played the game a pretty long time. This guy can hit corners at will, and he throws one up there. How hard is it to hit me in the thigh?”

In addition to the suspension, Major League Baseball fined Sexson an undisclosed amount for “violent and aggressive actions” — a phrase that also describes his approach to hitting.

Sexson didn’t appear to land any significant punches during the brawl, proving that he also can swing-and-miss on the mound.

Any regrets?

If the Philadelphia Phillies had a second chance, would they still trade Gavin Floyd to the Chicago White Sox for Freddy Garcia?

They’d rather relive the 1964 season.

The Phillies rushed Floyd to the majors at age 21 after making him the fourth overall pick in the 2001 draft out of Mount St. Joseph (Md.) High — where he played on the same team as Mark Teixeira. He struggled with is confidence and his command, the Phillies lost patience and dealt him for Garcia, who figured to push them into the playoffs a lot easier than Floyd.

Fast-forward to this season, which has seen Floyd carry no-hitters into the eighth and ninth innings. He allowed 20 hits in his first 39 2/3 innings and opponents were batting .149 against him, the lowest for any qualifying pitcher in the majors.

“I knew I had the ability, but I lost [confidence]. I wasn't sure I was going to get it back,” he said. “I feel confident now. Completely different. I had my tail between my legs three years ago.”

Wishing upon an All-Star

Rather than deny a rumor, as team executives so often do, Mariners president Chuck Armstrong decided to see how the other half lives and actually started one.

Armstrong caused tongues to wag recently when he suggested that Ken Griffey Jr. could or should return to Starbucks country, depending on the interpretation.

“I think everyone in Seattle would like to see him retire in a Mariners uniform,” Armstrong said. “He was born a Mariner and I'd like to see him finish up as a Mariner.”

On Wednesday, Mariners media-relations director Tim Hevly passed along a statement from Armstrong denying that the team had any immediate plans to acquire Griffey from the Cincinnati Reds.

Grabbing more pine

The Baltimore Orioles decided to go with a four-man bench after finding it empty during a recent game.

The Orioles had kept three reserves and 13 pitchers on their roster until Sunday, when they purchased infielder Alex Cintron’s contract from Triple-A Norfolk and optioned rookie reliever Bob McCrory. They needed another hitter with catcher Ramon Hernandez (left wrist) and second baseman Brian Roberts (left foot) injured and day-to-day.

Hernandez was scratched from Saturday night’s lineup after batting practice. Roberts left the game after the first inning. That meant outfielder Luke Scott was the only reserve available, but he entered in the fourth after Jay Payton was ejected.

Payton has no future as a comic. Not with his bad timing.

Happy to switch sides

Interleague play begins this weekend, which should come as good news to a certain shortstop in Texas.

Michael Young has the highest interleague average (.347) among active players with a minimum 200 at-bats. Detroit Tigers outfielder Magglio Ordonez is second at .345.

American League teams hold eight of the 10 best interleague records:

Team	Interleague record
New York Yankees	113-79
Oakland Athletics	113-81
Florida Marlins	105-81
Minnesota Twins	106-86
Seattle Mariners	107-87
Boston Red Sox	105-88
Chicago White Sox	104-89
Los Angeles Angels	104-90
Cleveland Indians	102-91
St. Louis Cardinals	84-76

The Orioles have the worst record among AL teams at 79-114.

Maximum stud

Maxim magazine will release its annual “Hot 100” list in its May 20 editions. A sneak preview, courtesy of a report on the Web site of “amNewYork,” reveals that six of the women on the list have dated New York Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter.

The hot half-dozen are Jessica Biel, Scarlett Johansson, Mariah Carey, Vanessa Minnillo, Gabrielle Union and Jessica Alba. Of that group, the report says, Johansson and Biel are in the top 10.

No word from Jeter on how he missed the other 94.

In a related note, Roger Clemens denies ever reading an issue of Maxim.

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