PEORIA, Ariz. -- For the Mariners and A’s, it’s time to play ball on Thursday. But first will come a call to the weatherman, with rain in the forecast all day in the Phoenix area.

First pitch for the Cactus League opener is 1:05 p.m. PT at Hohokam Stadium in Mesa, though both teams were already setting up contingency plans on Wednesday.

The Mariners have lefty Marco Gonzales lined up to pitch the first two innings against A’s right-hander Paul Blackburn, who was briefly in Seattle’s organization in 2016 before being traded to Oakland for Danny Valencia.

If the game is canceled, manager Scott Servais was still debating on Wednesday whether to have Gonzales get his work in with a bullpen session at the Mariners’ complex or push him back to a simulated game situation on Friday against Minor League hitters in Peoria.

The Mariners are scheduled to face the A's again on Friday in a 1:10 p.m. PT game at Peoria Stadium, with Mike Leake getting that start.

The two American League West teams are getting a jump on the rest of the Cactus League teams because of the early preparation needed for their regular-season Opening Series games in Japan on March 20-21, but Mother Nature may not be cooperating as rain is in the forecast for Friday as well.

“Understanding what the forecast looks like, we may have to adjust on the fly,” Servais said. “We’ll just have to wait and see. We have Plan B in place in case we do get rained out. Hopefully, we can get it in, but it’s not looking real promising.”

If the game is played, rookie Justus Sheffield will follow Gonzales and pitch two innings as well, followed by one-inning stints from relievers Shawn Armstrong, Dan Altavilla, R.J. Alaniz, Tyler Danish and Nick Rumbelow.

Starting position players scheduled to play in the opener are catcher Omar Narvaez, first baseman Ryon Healy, shortstop Tim Beckham and left fielder Domingo Santana, while prospects Evan White, Braden Bishop, Jake Fraley, Dom Thompson-Williams and Eric Filia are also among those making the trip to Mesa.

Thursday’s opener is slated for radio only in the Seattle area, while Friday’s game will be televised live.

The kids air it out

The Mariners held a simulated base-running competition at the end of Wednesday’s practice to prepare for Thursday’s opener and players had a chance to test their proficiency and speed in various situations. But the biggest impression from that session came from young outfield prospects Jarred Kelenic and Julio Rodriguez, who both nabbed baserunners with strong throws while working with the group of Minor Leaguers brought over to play defense during the drill.

Kelenic, ranked as the club's No. 2 prospect by MLB Pipeline, is the prize 19-year-old acquired from the Mets in the Robinson Cano/Edwin Diaz deal, while Rodriguez, 18, is the club’s top international prospect out of the Dominican Republic.

“Pretty awesome,” Servais said. “Kelenic and Julio, there’s a reason we like ‘em. This is their first exposure to anything like this and it was fun to watch. They’re special players. They’ll get an opportunity.

“I told them, ‘Hey, you guys will get a chance to come over for some [Cactus League] games. Most days you won’t play, but take it all in and get the experience of it all, and learn from the older guys. There’s a good chance you’ll see a couple of those guys -- especially those two -- in a few of our games over here.”

The two will likely start the season with West Virginia, which has replaced Clinton as the Mariners’ Class A affiliate.

Lewis dislocates finger

Outfielder Kyle Lewis, the club’s first-round pick in the 2016 MLB Draft, dislocated the pinkie finger on his left hand sliding into second base on the first at-bat of the baserunning drill.

After a trainer popped the finger back in place, Lewis had a quick X-ray on his hand before returning to the field. He reported the issue wasn’t serious.

“I’m good to go,” the 23-year-old said. “Just jammed it.”

Not exactly the way the Mariners wanted to start the spring with their promising prospect, who missed the previous two Spring Training camps while rehabbing from knee surgeries. But Servais said it’s all part of getting ready for the long haul.

“It happens. You can’t put kid gloves or wrap them up in bubble wrap,” he said. “We have to play the game and getting out here, running the bases hard and playing like a real game, it’s important.”

Ichiro takes a pitch off the foot

Felix Hernandez was among 12 pitchers throwing batting practice for the first time on Wednesday and the veteran right-hander nailed Ichiro Suzuki on the right foot with a breaking ball in the dirt at one point.

Ichiro yelled out in pain and limped away momentarily, but said he was fine. He returned to take his normal swings against the next pitcher.