He Knows How It Feels to Be Wanted and Wanted and . . .

Forget the Baseball Register. Here is another way to measure the 19-year major league career of Mike Morgan, who made his debut with the Oakland Athletics at 18 and is now a starter and reliever with the Texas Rangers at 39: Morgan has played for 22 managers and pitched to 53 catchers, the most recent being Ivan Rodriguez, possibly the best.

With disappointing Esteban Loaiza demoted to the bullpen and on the trading block, Morgan is expected to be the Rangers’ No. 5 starter when they need a No. 5, which comes up for the first time Tuesday in Seattle.

He warmed up with two scoreless relief appearances in the first three games, setting a major league record by appearing with his 11th team.

“It means somebody wants you, and that’s not all bad,” he said.

His is a record for longevity and durability that might be tough to break, although Morgan says, “It might be broken by a guy on this team.”

He referred to third baseman Todd Zeile, who is playing for his seventh team, all in the last four years.

In the meantime, Morgan understands he can’t quibble over his role.

“Starting or relieving, it doesn’t matter,” he said. “I’m here to pitch whenever they want me to pitch.”

He couldn’t have done it better Wednesday, pitching 2 2/3 scoreless innings against the Detroit Tigers to emerge with the win and another major league record. He has posted wins with 10 teams, including the Dodgers, with whom Morgan was 33-36 during a three-year stint beginning in 1989--one of his longest residencies.

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Some associated with the Seattle Mariners wonder why Alex Rodriguez, who had been operating on a tender knee during spring training, was continuing to do an agility drill that required him to jump over boxes about chair high.

Rodriguez tore cartilage in the process, required surgery and is out at least four weeks. The Mariners were confident they could pick up the slack on a defensive basis at least, but rookie Carlos Guillen, who was moving from second base to his original position of shortstop, came out of Saturday’s game with his own knee injury--the severity uncertain.

The Mariners know better than to suggest they can compensate for the offensive loss.

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Angel scouting director Bob Fontaine Jr. received a measure of vindication this week when McKay Christensen made his major league debut as the Chicago White Sox center fielder.

The respected Fontaine took heat when the Angels made Christensen their first-round draft selection in 1994, knowing the high school outfielder was committed to a two-year Mormon mission. It was suspected the Angels picked Christensen only because of signability, but Fontaine has long predicted Christensen would return to become a bona fide big leaguer--and he took the first step Monday night with two superb catches in Seattle.

Fontaine, of course, would have preferred Christensen had done it in an Angel uniform, but he was still on his mission in Japan when the Angels traded him in 1995 to reacquire Jim Abbott--a lopsided deal that also cost the Angels two young pitchers, Bill Simas and John Snyder, both regulars in the White Sox bullpen.

Said Christensen, 23, of the two years he lost on his mission: “I’d do it again. It made me a better person.”

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Small-market overkill: Kansas City Royal Manager Tony Muser keeps a slingshot on his desk as a reminder of his team’s David and Goliath task.

The reality is that the Royals have no shot, sling or otherwise. An 0-3 debut against the Boston Red Sox underscored that.

“My toughest job will be the morale factor, keeping everybody up and everybody together,” Muser said of a sorry situation.