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By JOHN ROMANO
© St. Petersburg Times, published June 11, 2001
ST. PETERSBURG -- For a game that essentially was a loss by the sixth inning, the Rays still had reason for optimism by the end.
Paul Wilson, in his first relief appearance of the season, was able to work without pressure in the final three innings Sunday and showed marked improvement from his previous two starts.
"He seemed very relaxed when he came to the mound," manager Hal McRae said. "He was crisp with his fastball and the breaking stuff. He generated some bad swings, and that's the type of pitcher he is."
Wilson went 3 2/3 innings and struck out five, giving up a two-run homer to Joe McEwing in the ninth.
It had been nine days between appearances for Wilson because McRae had been looking for an ideal situation in which to work him.
Wilson said he spent the first 5-6 days of inactivity working on his pitching mechanics, which he said was the cause of his 2-7 record and 8.43 ERA in 12 starts. Wilson's front shoulder was going side to side too much instead of driving toward the plate, which caused his pitches to hang up in the zone.
"I took for granted my mechanics. I thought in spring everything was where I needed to be," Wilson said. "You can't take that for granted, you have to keep fine-tuning those things. It's not going to happen overnight."
ON THE HORIZON: Wilson Alvarez was optimistic that he would be pitching in the majors within a few weeks after he pitched six shutout innings for Double-A Orlando on Saturday.
Alvarez, who had shoulder surgery a little more than a year ago, spent more than a month pitching in extended spring training. He said he was pleased he pitched well against more experienced players in Double A and said building arm strength is all that remains.
"Everything is going really good," he said. "I got up to 89 mph and now I just need to be up there consistently."
PEN PROCESS: A bullpen that has seen Ken Hill and Tony Fiore bomb in late-inning roles still is in flux. Travis Phelps remains the No. 1 setup man and Esteban Yan is the closer, but other roles still are being defined.
Rusty Meacham's recent struggles means left-hander Doug Creek probably will join Phelps as a seventh- and eighth-inning setup man. Meacham, Jeff Wallace and Dan Wheeler will throw middle relief, with Wilson as the long man.
Meacham was brilliant in spring training and got off to a good start after being called up from Triple-A Durham, but he has a 9.94 ERA in his past 11 appearances. McRae said Meacham, one of the more intense players on the roster, might be getting a little too excited on the mound.
"He rushes and when he does that, his arm doesn't catch up, and it elevates the ball," McRae said. "He has to pitch down to get movement, so it doesn't work to his advantage to get the ball up."
IN LIMBO: Ariel Prieto's appearance on the roster was brief and it does not look as if he will be back any time soon. Prieto went on the disabled list with shoulder tendinitis a month ago today after one appearance.
Trainer Jamie Reed said Prieto has had shoulder discomfort whenever he attempts to extend his rehab. Surgery might be a consideration.
It was not the best of days for Rays shortstop Andy Sheets, who struck out three times and committed an error, but second-base umpire Jeff Nelson did not help out. Nelson nailed Sheets on the seldom-called "neighborhood" play on which a middle infielder is merely in the vicinity of second base while turning a double play. At least Nelson got that call right. Earlier in the game, he cost Sheets an error. Sheets dropped the throw from Damian Rolls on another potential double play, but he recovered to tag the runner before he reached the base. Nelson, however, missed the tag, and Sheets was charged with an error.