Beavan set for season debut vs. Rangers
ARLINGTON -- Blake Beavan flew with the Mariners to Texas and did some pregame work on the field at Globe Life Park on Monday, but the big right-hander won't be officially added to the 25-man roster until Tuesday, when he's scheduled to take James Paxton's spot in the rotation.
Beavan, 25, will make his seventh start against the team that drafted him in 2007, then traded him to Seattle in the Cliff Lee deal in 2010. He's had pretty good success against the Rangers, going 3-3 with a 2.84 ERA in seven appearances (six starts), including a 1-2 mark with a 4.37 ERA in four games in Arlington.
Beavan grew up in nearby Irving and owns a ranch about 90 miles west of Fort Worth, so this will be something of a homecoming for him. But more important, he says, is continuing to build on what he's done in two early-season starts with Triple-A Tacoma, where he went 1-0 with a 2.08 ERA.
"I'm feeling good," said the 6-foot-7, 245-pound right-hander. "I just went down and tried to take care of business. I'm planning on trying to pick up where these guys have left off. It's unfortunate that Paxton is injured, but he'll be fine and get back. In the meantime, hopefully I can step in and continue what these guys have been doing, because they've been playing pretty good baseball."
Beavan won 11 games for Seattle in 2012, but lost his starting job after two outings last year and was moved into the bullpen and ultimately sent to Tacoma for much of 2013. He faced Texas once last season and allowed three hits and three runs over 3 1/3 innings in a long-relief stint in an 11-3 loss on April 21.
Beavan is tentatively listed as the starter for Sunday in Miami as well, but top prospect Taijuan Walker is making a rehab start Tuesday for Tacoma and is getting close to being called up after recovering from a sore shoulder in spring.
Beavan knows his time with the Mariners might be short, so the challenge is to stay within himself in whatever chances he gets.
"That's the hard part, for sure," Beavan said. "You want to take advantage of your opportunity while you're here, but at the same time, you don't want to get out of what you have been doing to have success, whether it was Double-A or Triple-A or whatever it might be.
"When I went to Tacoma, I just told myself, 'Don't get negative, don't get upset that you're here, just take it as an opportunity to prove and show you can help when a phone call is needed.' That was my whole plan, just to take advantage of my opportunity and not worry about stuff that I can't control and just show these guys I am capable and ready to step in if need be at this level."