Manager Don Wakamatsu has the early lead in first-to-arrive contest with the Old Bats

It’s early, but the Old Bats are trailing.

For the second straight spring, there is a group of slightly-over middle-age women (section 342 at Safeco Field) who make the pilgrimage to Spring Training and leave their mark.

On any given day, they are the first people to show up for the workouts.

And they are a hoot.

“I met these ladies last year,” manager Don Wakamatsu said, “and they asked me, ‘what time do you get to the ballpark?’ I told them I got there early, so they were not going to beat me here.

“Sometimes, I would literally get there at 5 o’clock in the morning and they had been there for almost an hour,” he said. “On top of that, they kept score and put it right in front of my parking spot.”

As of today, Wak leads, 5-1.

The lineups for today’s charity game against the Padres has been posted and you won’t find many regulars in it. Actually, you won’t find any.

1. Michael Saunders, CF; 2. Eric Byrnes, LF; Ryan Garko, 1B; Mike Sweeney, DH; Jack Hannahan, SS; Ryan Langerhans, RF; Josh Bard, C; Matt Tuiasosopo, 2B; Chris Woodward, 3B; Jason Vargas, P.

— Jim Street