Game 137: Mariners at Athletics
RHP King Felix Hernandez vs. RHP Joe Blanton, 1:05pm, FSN/ESPN/ESPN2 and KOMO. I have no idea what your local/regional TV situation might be, so you’ll have to check it out for yourself.
Remember at the beginning of the year, when everyone (well, most everyone) said the A’s would be awful because they traded away Tim Hudson and Mark Mulder? The two guys who took those spots in the rotation were Joe Blanton and Danny Haren.
Joe Blanton: 36.8, $316,500
Danny Haren: 30.4, $323,500
TOTAL: 67.2, $640,000
Tim Hudson: 36.6, $6,750,000
Mark Mulder: 35.5, $6,550,000
TOTAL: 72.1, $13,300,000
The first number is 2005 VORP. The second is 2005 salary. With Blanton-Haren, the A’s are getting 93% of the Hudson-Mulder performance for roughly 5% of the cost. Meanwhile, Oakland is 76-60 and a game back in both the division and wild card races thanks to the second-best team ERA in the league. Billy Beane — what a frickin’ idiot.
RF Ichiro
CF Reed
LF Ibanez
1B Sexson
3B Beltre
“DH” Dobbs
2B Lopez
C JoeJessica
SS Betancourt
Happy Felix Day!
Comments
218 Responses to “Game 137: Mariners at Athletics”
More on Felix, from the AP:
“Mariners manager Mike Hargrove planned to let Hernandez finish the game before he ran into trouble in the seventh. There were no complaints from the pitcher when he got pulled.
“Felix, if he had a mouth full of nickels he wouldn’t give you change for a quarter,†Hargrove said. “He doesn’t speak much.â€Â
Sorry but the worst baseball movie of all time is ED, which features a young pitcher (mat leblanc from freinds). and Mickey Mantles Monky which is obvioulsy a midget in a monky suit. Truley the worst ever!!!
and FWIW, he’s been doing his interviews through a translator.. we also need to know the spanish word he used, as well as the tone and expression…
In stories, the arrogant inevitably get their come-uppance. In real life, they’re at least as likely to be infuriatingly successful, because they never doubt themselves even when they lose.
Hell, I think that kind of arrogance is an asset in a world-class athlete. Most others who have it learn to guard what they say. (But not all of them. And Reggie Jackson never got his come-uppance, either.)
For as much as people talk about confidence being important to successful pitching, I would have thought people would be more happy that Felix’s confidence is through the roof.
I’m willing to let him be 19 years old and happy for now. He’s got the rest of his life to be diplomatic and wary of failure. Just keep puttin’ up zeros, kid.
A good point from msb about the translation… somebody bust out Babelfish!
There will be no curmuffins! You hear me? No curmuffins!
My gosh people are picky. Felix maks a confident statement and someone has to sit here and philosophize about why he’s clearly doomed to failure.
BTW, David, Pitchers aren’t destined to succeed only 3 or 4 times out of 10. That would be hitters. Even crappy pitchers “succeed” more often than not (if you’re defining success/failure as not making an out/making an out as you clearly were with that reference). A pitcher as gifted as Felix is destined to succeed far more often than he fails.
Oh, and lighten up.
If Felix wasn’t that confident I’d be worried.
I hate false modesty much more than I dislike justifiable arrogance.
With Felix’s talent, that comment is just about 100 percent accurate. When he’s on his game he is as close to unbeatable as ANY pitcher in baseball right now.
Can you think of another single pitcher you’d rather the Mariners had instead of Felix right now?
So to summarize…
FELIX HERNANDEZ, MLB career so far:
7 GS
51.0 IP
1.59 ERA
.174 BAA
.222 OBP
.253 SLG
4.0 GB/FB
1.8 BB/9
8.8 SO/9
5.0 SO/BB
0.8 WHIP
Ummm.
ESPN:
“I lost a little bit of concentration, then decided to center myself, and when I do that, I cannot fail,” Hernandez said.
http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/recap?gameId=250905111
Knowledgeable fans thought the A’s would be 3-4 games worse than if they had Hudson and Mulder. So whoopee! That is about right so far.
And then, if they lose the division by 2-3 games, I guess Billy won’t mind that because he’ll win next year because Blanton.
I am on the record as a lover of Beane. So spare the accusations to the contrary.
Knowledgeable fans thought the A’s would be 3-4 games worse than if they had Hudson and Mulder. So whoopee! That is about right so far.
Thoses “knowledgable fans” were just disastrously wrong about why.
If I tell you not to drive to work tomorrow because I have a feeling you’re going to get in a car accident and die, but you ignore me, drive to work anyways, make it there safely, and then your building blows up, I wasn’t “right” because I said you would die and you did.
The A’s pitching has been just as good as it would have been, maybe better, than had they not made those trades.
A clip from the Contra Costa Times game recap:
“I’m just judging him by one out time, but he’s got as good of stuff as I’ve seen,” designated hitter Scott Hatteberg said. “He’s got great command, and that stuff’s electric. He’s got three great pitches.”
Good lord, how many pitchers do you think Scott Hatteberg has faced? These testimonials keep coming around that impress upon me just how rare and special this kid really is.
LINK….http://www.contracostatimes.com/mld/cctimes/sports/baseball/mlb/oakland_athletics/12570510.htm
ah, who knows what he really said 🙂
Times: “I made it feel like it was just me and Yorvit,” he said, referring to catcher Yorvit Torrealba. “I just threw to him. He did a great job. Once I’m back on my game I can’t fail.”
TNT: “I lost a little concentration out there,†Hernandez said, shrugging a bit. “Once I’m on my game, I can’t fail.â€Â
JMB said: “somebody bust out Babelfish!”
OAKLAND, California – El adolescente fenómeno Félix Hernández se mostró deslumbrante de nuevo, y el dominicano Adrián Beltré y Greg Dobbs impulsaron una carrera cada uno para que los Marineros de Seattle derrotaran 2-0 a los Atléticos de Oakland. El cubano Yuniesky Betancourt bateó un triple para Seattle, que le propinó a los Atléticos su quinta derrota en 6 encuentros. El venezolano Hernández (3-2), de 19 años, blanqueó en siete innings para vencer al novato de Oakland Joe Blanton (8-11), y obligó a muchos bateadores a conectar rolas de out. Sólo recibió un elevado que llegó a los jardines.
OAKLAND, California – the adolescent phenomenon Felix Hernandez was again overwhelming, and the Dominican Adrián Beltré and Greg Dobbs impelled a race each one so that the Sailors of Seattle defeated 2-0 to the Athletic ones of Oakland. The Cuban Yuniesky Betancourt batted a triple for Seattle, that offered to him to Athletic the its fifth defeat in 6 encounter. The Venezuelan Hernandez (3-2), of 19 years, whitened in seven innings to overcome the novice of Oakland Joe Blanton (8-11), and forced many batters to connect rolas of out. He only received a high one that arrived at the gardens.
Thanks for the babelfish translation…you done a thing wonderful we every one like funny much.
😛