FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. -- Mike Fetters is in good health, but still hurt by the rumors.
There were whispers last season that Fetters had an arm injury, that he was damaged goods and not worthy of a serious look in the free-agent market this winter. The Orioles didn't buy it.
That's why Fetters is in camp as a nonroster player who believes he has something to prove to all of baseball.
His first appearance yesterday didn't go exactly as he wanted, though it could have been worse. Two batters into his only inning, Fetters was putting out fires, escaping a second-and-third, no-out jam with only one run allowed.
It also happened to be the only run the Florida Marlins scored, as the Orioles evened their Grapefruit League record at 1-1 with a 6-1 victory. But manager Ray Miller cut him some slack. The pitcher he had wanted to see didn't stay hidden after a leadoff single and double.
Caught on the ropes, Fetters came off swinging.
"He gave up two quick hits, and then he got nasty," Miller said. "He showed me something. He's thrown very few sliders here, but when he got in trouble, he threw a first-pitch slider for a strike.
"I think he's a very usable guy. and he wants the ball."
He also wants his version of what happened last season to be heard over the whispers.
Fetters, 34, began the year in Oakland before being traded to Anaheim in August. He went 2-8 with a 4.30 ERA and five saves, numbers he blames on a torn calf muscle sustained while he was covering first base during an April game.
For reasons he can't explain, Fetters was thought to have an arm injury. The Orioles, in need of some right-handed relief help after losing Alan Mills to the Los Angeles Dodgers, sent a scout to his Arizona home to find the truth.
Fetters threw, and he convinced. The Orioles signed him to a minor-league contract on Feb. 4 with an invitation to spring training.
"I could not tell you why there were rumors about my arm," he said. "I popped my calf in my second outing, and it took me six weeks to get back. Even then, I was never healthy enough to get my mechanics straightened out and I became a defensive pitcher, trying to invent things to get me through a game.
"It was hard for me to swallow those rumors going around. This is my livelihood. There never was an arm problem. When I started hearing that, I was like, 'Where are they getting this from?' because I had never complained about my arm. The year before was my hamstring and last year was my calf."
If Fetters makes the club, he will receive $750,000 along with a possible $50,000 in appearance incentives. He made $2.475 million last season.
He'll have to fend off the usual spring challengers, including right-hander Doug Linton, who also signed a minor-league deal and is coming off two shutout innings in an intrasquad game last week.
"Even when you have a guaranteed contract, you're competing for a spot. It doesn't matter," Fetters said. "You come to camp and try to impress people. I've got to make the club, but I also know I've just got to do what I've got to do to be on the team. If I'm healthy and pitching the way I'm capable, I'll be fine. I'm confident in that. But there's nothing written in stone.
"I wanted to come here because I know this team, on paper, has a chance to win the World Series."
Fetters has 85 career saves since breaking into the majors with the Angels in 1989, but he would work mostly in middle relief with the Orioles.
"He could be used the way we used Mills last year, giving you the sixth inning or getting you out of the seventh, or pitch the seventh and to the first hitter in the eighth," Miller said. "There's a long way to go, but I think he's going to end up throwing pretty good before it's over."
Fetters saved 17, 22 and 32 games in consecutive seasons with Milwaukee beginning in 1994. He can close if needed, but doesn't burn for more opportunities.
"When I was closing, I just kind of evolved into that role," he said. "I was always a setup guy. Even when I was closing, I never considered myself a closer. I was filling a void because we had nobody else. And I thought I did a pretty good job with it. I know I can do it, but I'm willing to take the ball whenever they want me to have it. I'm not particular.
"I just need to pitch on a regular basis to be effective. I can't pitch once every 15 days. If I'm throwing it once every third day, I'm all right. I'll be effective and be able to get people out. The role doesn't matter.
"The biggest thing is for me to stay healthy. I've had a couple of nagging injuries the last few years that cost me the ability to do my job, but I feel pretty good. I'm crossing my fingers that nothing happens physically."
Fingers crossed, right arm poised for revenge.
"I want to squash all those rumors," he said. "I want to go out and start off very well so people can say, 'We were all wrong.' "
Pub Date: 3/08/99