Four days before he was due at the Mariners' 2006 spring training camp, Adrian Beltre had already shed part of his disappointing 2005.

His weight.

The third baseman looked almost lanky when he walked into the clubhouse for the first time Friday morning. He said he lost 12 pounds, down to 216.

"Ran like crazy," he said when asked how he slimmed down.

He said he also changed his diet to almost exclusively chicken, salads and other healthy foods — all in smaller portions than he had ever eaten.

He didn't hire a nutritionist, didn't employ a personal trainer.

"I just followed everything my wife would tell me," Beltre said.

Even though he is listed at 5-feet-11, 220 pounds, Beltre said he spent most of last season playing at 227.

Mariners manager Mike Hargrove suggested the weight shedding at the end of last season to help reduce wear on Beltre's hamstrings. Beltre missed a start last May and five games in June with left hamstring strains.

Beltre complied — though he is waiting for the results.

"They thought it would be better to be a little lighter to make it easier on the hamstrings," he said. "We'll see how it works out."

The hamstrings weren't his only 2005 strains. He finished the first season of his $64 million, five-year Seattle contract batting just .255 with 19 home runs. In 2004 with the Los Angeles Dodgers, he hit .344 with a major league-leading 48 home runs — tying Mike Schmidt's 1980 league record for third basemen.

Beltre also shed something else from last season: His jersey number, 5. He is now wearing No. 29, the number he had with Los Angeles. Since-released Mariner Bret Boone was wearing No. 29 at this time last season.

Thus, Beltre showed up Friday with some feeling of renewal. A batting practice moon shot over two fences into an adjacent field furthered that feeling.

"I think it's important he's here," Hargrove said.

Beltre said he arrived early to get a jump start with new hitting coach Jeff Pentland, who went to Los Angeles for a day over the winter to get to know the player. On Friday, Beltre asked Pentland for extra hitting following his scheduled session.

"Better to be here doing something positive than sitting at home," Beltre said.

He will leave camp March 2 to join a packed Dominican Republic team for the initial World Baseball Classic. That preliminary roster includes Albert Pujols, Miguel Tejada, Manny Ramirez, Vladimir Guerrero and Alfonso Soriano.

"I'm going to be glad if I am in the lineup, put it that way," Beltre said.