After Eight Years in Minors, Amaral Has Major Problems in Mariner Debut

The big time has created some big headaches for career minor leaguer Rich Amaral, who debuted with the Mariners this week.

The Mariners hoped that Amaral, who graduated from Estancia High School in 1980 and later played for Orange Coast College and UCLA, could bring some offense with him from triple-A Calgary, where he hit .358 in 39 games this season.

Manager Jim Lefebvre installed Amaral at shortstop in place of slumping Omar Vizquel, who was hitting .191 in 36 games.

But Amaral’s three-day stint with the majors turned as gloomy as a Seattle winter.

The 29-year-old was placed on the 15-day disabled list Wednesday because of sprained ligaments in his left elbow sustained in a first-inning collision Tuesday night with Kirk Gibson of the Kansas City Royals.

The Mariners recalled shortstop Jeff Schaefer from Calgary to take Amaral’s spot on the roster.

In his ninth season of professional baseball, Amaral made his major league debut Monday night against Kansas City. He was hit by a pitch in his first at-bat, went hitless in his first two official at-bats and committed a throwing error. The Mariners lost 6-3 to the Royals.

Things didn’t get any better Tuesday night. Amaral went 0 for 3 and committed another error that allowed a run to score. The Royals beat the Mariners, 6-5, Seattle’s seventh consecutive loss.

Despite his problems, Amaral was thrilled to be in the majors.

“This is a dream come true,” he said after Monday’s game. “This is something I’ve been working my whole life for. I put in eight long years in the minor leagues and it’s great to finally be getting my chance.”