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February 13, 2006Piazza signing motivates TC's MirabelliTRAVERSE CITY - It has been a winter of change for Doug Mirabelli - perhaps a little too much change.Once a popular member of the Boston Red Sox, the Traverse City resident was traded to San Diego in December and told shortly thereafter that he would be the team's starting catcher in 2006. Then came the recent free-agent signing of longtime all-star Mike Piazza, who hopes to catch 90-100 games for the Padres this summer. "It bums me out a little bit, to be honest," Mirabelli said earlier this week before leaving for spring training in Peoria, Ariz. "I've always held back and tried not to get too excited about things because baseball is what it is - a business - and things can change pretty quickly. "(General manager Kevin Towers) told me that I would start unless something fell into his lap, and Piazza will help this team," Mirabelli said. "I'm just surprised that he couldn't find work in the American League (where he could be used as a designated hitter). Getting a hitter like Piazza for what? - $1.25 million a year (plus incentives)? You can't turn that down." Mirabelli, who backed up Jason Varitek for five seasons in Boston, said he would be upset if he was heading to San Diego strictly as a No. 2 catcher. But he doesn't believe that is the case, considering Piazza's injury problems in recent years. "I think I can still play a big role," Mirabelli said. "In my mind, I'm going to catch a lot of games and we'll both get our at-bats." Mirabelli, 35, put himself through a grueling workout routine during the off-season, one that resembled a boxer in training. In fact, Mirabelli had daily workouts with Trigger Boxing's Bill Bustance during the weeks leading up to camp. "I had enough driving me with a new team and a contract year," said Mirabelli, who is signed through this season. "(The addition of Piazza) just adds to it. It adds to the motivation. "He's a (future) Hall of Famer, but I'm here to play, too." Mirabelli, a three-time All-American at Wichita State who played on the 1990 NCAA National Championship team, said he will miss Boston and its fans, who treated him like royalty after the Red Sox won the World Series in 2004 and ended an 86-year drought. "It was an incredible year," Mirabelli said. "We started off strong (15-6 in April), but then we played .500 ball into August. People thought we were out of it. "You can't really get a feel for a team until they're successful, and we had an incredible streak in August (in which the Sox won 16 of 17 games). "We started winning in all sorts of ways. It was exciting." From Aug. 1 to the end of the regular season, Boston went 42-18 and made the playoffs as a wild card. The Red Sox swept the Angels in the opening round, but they trailed the Yankees 3-0 in the A.L. Championship Series after being destroyed 19-8 in Game 3. Down 4-3 in the ninth inning of Game 4 with Yankees closer Mariano Rivera on the mound, the end seemed near. But Bill Mueller's RBI single tied it - after pinch runner Dave Roberts swiped second base - and David Ortiz slugged a walk-off homer with a man aboard to win it in the 12th. Game 5 was more of the same as Ortiz singled in the game-winner in the 14th inning of a 5-4 victory. Boston then swept the final two games at Yankee Stadium to become the first team in major league history to win a series after trailing three games to none. The Sox kept the momentum going by sweeping the St. Louis Cardinals in the World Series, sending Boston fans into a state of delirium. "To this day, you walk down the street and they'll thank you," said Mirabelli, who had his best season that summer with 9 home runs, 32 RBIs and a .281 batting average in 160 at-bats. "It's humbling. It's just a game, but obviously we knew what was at stake. "We talked about what it would be like if we won, but you really can't imagine it. It was a three-day party. It was definitely something that you can never take away. "The mortality rate in Boston skyrocketed after that, it really did. People waited their whole lives for that and they felt they could finally die in peace." Mirabelli, who played parts of four seasons in San Francisco at the start of his career, said he is looking forward to the challenge of playing in the National League, which uses more strategic lineup changes because there is no DH. He also likes the city of San Diego. For now, though, the Mirabelli family - Doug, wife Kristin and daughters Molly, 4, and Grace, 2 - have no plans to leave Traverse City. There are just too many reasons to stay, including the fact that Kristin's parents, Brian and Joanne Klumpp, and her brother Brian and his family live here. "It's great for the girls to grow up in a community like this," Mirabelli said. "We like it a lot. We're excited about being here." The Padres' camp officially begins on Thursday when pitchers and catchers report. The team's first full workout is Feb. 22.
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