Hernandez Baseball’s Best Pitcher Not Named Kershaw
The 2014 Major League Baseball regular season is in its final stretch. With 25 games or less to be played by most teams, the regular season race for the playoffs is heating up on all fronts.
The Seattle Mariners are battling for a postseason spot in the American League. The Mariners have not reached the playoffs since 2001, but are in the thick of the AL wildcard chase now.
Seattle is currently 75-63 overall 8 games behind the first place Los Angeles Angels in the AL West. However, Seattle is just a half game behind the Detroit Tigers for the second and final wildcard spot in the American League.
Great pitching wins championships and a great pitcher can help you get the opportunity to do so. Felix Hernandez is one of those great pitchers.
On Wednesday, King Felix showed why he is considered the best pitcher in the Majors this season who is not named Clayton Kershaw.
Prior to Wednesday’s start, Hernandez had three straight unFelix-like starts, including allowing four home runs in his last start versus Washington.
Of course, Hernandez was likely due for a short spell of trouble after reeling off 17 straight starts of at least seven innings and two runs or less, which set a major league record.
However, it is crunch time now and Seattle needs the King more than ever. Seattle had lost two straight series and a loss on Wednesday would have made it three straight.
Hernandez’s record for Septembers past did not help matters. In 2013, he was out three weeks in September with an injured oblique. In 2012, Felix was 0-4 in his six starts with an ERA of 6.62. In 2011, despite additional rest between his starts, he gave up 30 hits across 16 innings over his last three starts.
Three straight Septembers and three straight nightmares; things did not look good heading into Wednesday night.
The Mariners were facing the Oakland A’s and Jon Lester. Felix was having a pitching duel with Lester. Felix threw three-hit ball for eight innings, but one was a home run, and Lester and the A’s were leading 1-0 into the seventh.
Hernandez is used to losing 1-0 during his career. He has given up one run in 70 starts over his career and has won just over half or 37 of the games.
In the seventh, the Mariners rallied for 2 runs, Hernandez tossed scoreless seventh and eighth innings and Fernando Rodney retired the Oakland side in the ninth for a Mariners win.
Of course, one great start for Hernandez does not mean he is back from his slump, but then again three subpar starts does not mean he was heading for a bad last month of the season.
However, it feels as if Seattle needs to win the Hernandez games since he usually gives them the best opportunity in the rotation.
Hernandez is now 4-0 with an ERA of 2.15 versus the A’s and 10-3 with an ERA of 2.03 versus teams above .500. On the season, he is 14-5 with an ERA of 2.18 and has 209 strikeouts.
