Friday, March 21, 1997 | 11:59 a.m.
The last thing the Seattle Mariners need as they attempt to wrest the American League West title from the Texas Rangers is an injury to pitcher Randy Johnson.
For a moment Thursday, they had to wonder if that would be the case. The 6-foot-10 left-hander stirred concern in the fifth inning at Mesa, Ariz., when he grimaced in pain after fielding Brian McRae's soft grounder.
"It was just a little ache," said Johnson, the 1995 AL Cy Young winner who missed most of last season before having back surgery in September.
Johnson threw 69 pitches, and only one of the three runs he allowed in 4 2/3 innings was earned in a 6-4 victory over the Chicago Cubs
"I thought I threw pretty well," he said. "It was pretty hot out there, and I felt like I kind of hit a wall in about the fourth inning.
"The only way I can get work is to go deep into the game. But I felt good. That's the most important thing."
He said he never thought about his back while fielding McRae's grounder.
Shuey replace Mesa
Paul Shuey will get the first shot at closing games while Jose Mesa is unavailable due to a rape trial, Cleveland manager Mike Hargrove said.
"He's been groomed for the role. He's got outstanding stuff," Hargrove said. "He's the guy we'll go to first."
When Mesa slumped last season, Hargrove made Shuey the closer temporarily. Shuey, 26, was 5-2 with a 2.85 ERA and four saves.
The Indians do not know how long they will be without Mesa, their ace closer who goes on trial for rape March 31 in Cleveland. Cleveland opens the season April 2 at Oakland.
Mesa had 39 saves in 44 chances last season, and has saved 85 games for Cleveland in the last two years.
'Wild Thing' demoted
Bob Boone sounded happy with the progress of reliever Mitch Williams. But "Wild Thing," as Williams is known, was anything but wild about the Kansas City manager's decision to farm him out.
The left-hander, who set single-season save records with two National League teams, but is better known for his failures -- blowing a 14-10 lead in a 15-14 loss in Game 4 and allowing Joe Carter's decisive homer in Game 6 of the 1993 World Series -- was asked Thursday to go to Triple-A Omaha.
"He's disappointed," Boone said. "He's made significant strides. But it's a matter of right now I can't give him enough innings."
Williams refused to talk after emerging from Boone's office, other than to say, "I'm going to Omaha," as he packed his belongings and walked out in obvious anger.
The cut followed a perfect inning in a 5-4 victory over Pittsburgh.
Exhibition games
* MARINERS 6, CUBS 4: At Mesa, Ariz., Johnson got the support he needed when Joey Cora hit a grand slam. Johnson contributed to the big hit by drawing a walk to load the bases in the fifth inning.
* ROYALS 5, PIRATES 4: At Haines City, Fla., Clint Sodowsky walked Jon Nunally with the bases loaded in the eighth inning to force in the decisive run for Kansas City.
* MARLINS 8, TIGERS 3: At Melbourne, Fla., Bobby Bonilla hit two homers, and Pat Rapp won his second game of the spring for Florida, which improved to 18-4.
* PADRES 7, ATHLETICS 3: At Peoria, Ariz., Jody Reed's two-run homer broke open a close game in the seventh inning. Reed, battling for the starting job at second base, went 2-for-4 and drove in three runs.
* BRAVES 8, ORIOLES 1: At West Palm Beach, Fla., Jermaine Dye hit a two-run homer, his first this spring for Atlanta. Tony Graffanino had a two-run double in a fourth-run eighth inning.
* DODGERS 8, ASTROS 3: At Kissimmee, Fla., Brett Butler, Wilton Guerrero and Raul Mondesi had two hits apiece among 18 by Los Angeles, which ended Houston's five-game winning streak.
* CARDINALS 8, YANKEES 3: At St. Petersburg, Fla., Donovan Osborne pitched well. Dwight Gooden didn't. Osborne gave up a run on three hits while striking out four in six innings. Gooden, who entered the game with a 1.06 ERA, allowed six runs on 10 hits in six innings.
* BREWERS 10, ANGELS 7: At Tempe, Ariz., John Jaha's two-run homer -- his fifth this spring -- highlighted a seven-run sixth-inning that led Milwaukee over Anaheim.
* GIANTS 9, ROCKIES 3: At Scottsdale, Ariz., Rick Wilkins had two hits and drove in four runs for San Francisco. Darryl Hamilton and Jose Vizcaino, batting 1-2 in the order, had three hits apiece and scored a combined five runs for the Giants.
* BLUE JAYS 4, TWINS 1: At Fort Myers, Fla., Juan Guzman pitched 4 2-3 shutout innings to lead Toronto in a seven-inning, rain-shortened night game. The Blue Jays scored three runs off Twins starter Bob Tewksbury in the fifth.
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