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”
USSM uses and recommends
As if the schedule didn’t already favor Anaheim, how lucky do the Angels feel this morning? They get rookie Jeff Harris; their rivals for the division title, Oakland, draw King Felix Hernandez.
Which was the better deal for the A’s? Mulder or Hudson. Personally I say Mulder for now but Hudson might look better in 3 years.
I’d have to go back and look at all the pieces involved… but the Mulder deal does include Daric Barton, who could be in the majors by next season.
Mulder, but only because Meyer has had injury problems, Cruz still hasn’t lived up to potential, and Thomas has been shit. Barton is useful, Calero is useful, and Haren’s been flat awesome.
This game appears to be on FSN, actually…
I was just going by the M’s website, but you’re right lauren — I’ve got the FSN feed on MLB.tv right now. Huh.
So it does! At least in Idaho.
Just think how scary-good the A’s would be if they had a healthy Dan Meyer on their pitching staff (Meyer being the centerpiece of the Hudson deal).
I was on record here as saying the A’s did well rounding up all that cheap comer talent during the offseason, and that doesn’t even coun t the good homegrown guys. Who would have thought Dan Johnson would be this good? And Huston Street … I finally got a good chance to watch him for the first time last night, and he’s ridiculously off-the-charts good. Great speed changes, great movement, great poise as a ROOKIE CLOSER.
Even the moves that didn’t work out so good (Keith Ginter) or the rookies who haven’t fully developed (Nick Swisher) are mere blips in this sea of self-inflicted good fortune. I know people see me as a Zito-hata, but all I’ve ever really said is that he has the biggest performance-to-reputation ratio-gap in the majors. And despite getting bitch-slapped last night, he’s still pretty good.
I can’t wait to listen to Billy Beane talk up in Port Angeles.
In typically idiotic baseball fashion, instead of getting this game in New York (where the Yankees are battling with the A’s for the playoffs), we get Minnesota-Texas…what a joke.
Actually Jim, I remember you saying you wouldn’t trade any single member of the M’s rotation for Zito.
At the time, no. Clearly I was wrong about that. But, really, that was a rhetorical overreaction to all this blather about “Barry Zito, elite pitcher” and “Barry Zito, Cy Young” that still passes as conventional widsom out there.
Dobbs at DH. More importantly, yet another game where someone other than Morse is at DH (like Dobbs or Hansen). Did Morse do something to piss Hargrove off?
Nah, I think he just wants the lefty out there.
Gentlemen, please be seated.
Nice use of Johnny Cash’s “Brige Over Troubled Water” cover, there.
European contingent greets King Felix!
Swisher? I don’t even know her!
Here in the Hudson Valley, on Time-Warner Cablevision, ESPN is showing the NFL preview show “1st and 10.” And as far as I can tell — today’s the first day I’ve specifically looked for it — we don’t get ESPN2. Say what?!
Father wants to trade Beltre for pitching and put Dobbs at 3rd. He thinks this is a great idea. What does one say to this?
Hey, did you know Greg Dobbs is *older* than Adrian Beltre?! Amazing but true. You might work that in as part of your argument.
The ump is giving Felix the high strike on his FB today. This could be a long day for the A’s.
I knew that but I forgot about that.
I honestly didn’t know until just now. I knew it was close, but didn’t think Dobbs was actually older.
How about Beltre for Pedro Martinez and Mike Cameron? Morse, Dobbs, Leone or Bloomquist could play third.
I thought the difference was more than it actually is. I thought Beltre was 25 and Dobbs was 28, not 26 and 27.
Yeah, we know how the A’s love a good sac bunt.
Okay, Beltre and Reed if Beltre alone is not enough?
27: With no DH, why would the Mets trade for Beltre when they have a studly young 3B in David Wright?
Swisher: i love that joke.
Felix: kicking ass and not even bothering to take names as they are beneath him.
K, ground out, groundout.
Ground out, K, groundout.
This could be a short, short game.
World Series, not sure if you’re kidding or serious, but heck no. We’d be better off spending 4/$40 on Millwood. The last thing we need is a good field, so-so hit outfielder.
Despite the slow start, I honestly believe Beltre has a good (cheap) contract.
#27. The Mets already have a better third baseman then Adrian Beltre. His name is David Wright.
I see no reason to trade the second best hitter on the team when our hitting is almost as much a problem as the pitching.
Looks like we’ve got ourselves a good old fashioned pitcher’s duel.
28: I don’t know. Just we could have gone in a different direction and after Pedro ( and Cameron) instead of Beltre if we really wanted to. Not sure if that would have been good or not, and not sure yet (still holding out hope) if Beltre signing was good. Just thinking out loud.
JMB: Try channel 63. That’s ESPN2 up here in Annandale-on-Hudson.
damn fluke.
Fairly and Niehaus appear to be losing it over the lack of bunt play.
The A’s are going to bunt a runner already in scoring position, over to 3rd? I suppose they might, but it’s hard to imagine.
Thanks JH. It was cleverly disguised as HGTV.
yay
Felix can field it!
Once again: dang. Felix’s poise and smarts on comebackers is amazing.
Fluke.
Hi. Just turned on the game!
How’s the King doing? Has he played Blue Saude Shoes yet?
…stupid friends with life or death problems on days when M’s are worth watching. grr…
Well done.
world series said: “Just we could have gone in a different direction and after Pedro (and Cameron) instead of Beltre if we really wanted to.”
and Pedro would have come to Seattle because why?
#13: “Nah, I think he just wants the lefty out there.”
I could accept this line of logic if a) the M’s were in a pennant race and b) Dobbs was a significantly better hitter against RHP than Morse.
Dobbs is a marginal prospect at best. Morse has hit well enough this year to become a guy that another team might consider trading for or someone that could fit in with the M’s as a decent reserve and a fill-in at SS if something were to happen to Betancourt (assuming it will take Cabrera at least another year before he becomes a legit MLB option).
Maybe the M’s have already decided they will trade Morse and are more concerned with not seeing him damage his current value by going into a late-season slump than trying to get him more AB to develop him further.
because he’s dominant in safeco.
Why did Beltre come here? He’s got to be losing sleep on that decision.
47 IP for Felix so far this season. My guess is no one even considers him for Rookie Of The Year.
With the count 3-0, Dave Valle asks “Would Hargrove give Dobbs the green light?”
Please, no.
Thanks 48, that too.
# 50. … don’t you need like at least 100 innings or something to even qualify?
Come to think of it, I’m not sure if I’d give Dobbs the green light at 3-1.
And that’s why Dobbs isn’t a major leaguer.
Great work Dobbs
I love that the A’s, who haaaaaaaaaaaate doing things like intentional walking guys, still laugh and put Beltre on to face Dobbs. Ugh.
But Ron said Dobbs was hot right now. of course, this was just after he channeled Hendu’s inner voice monologue.
I hate that Kendall is wearing the white shoes of shame, but I have to admit that I enjoy the increased chances to see him catch…
53: A player is ineligible for the ROY award if he had more than 50 IP prior to the season in question. Beyond that, the criteria is entirely up to the voters.
now THAT was an inning
I was in the other room first time that commercial came on and couldn’t hear the song well, only that it was Johnny Cash. I yelled into the other room asking what was on. “It’s a commercial for the Red Cross, hurricane relief.”
I immediately thought, “Isn’t it tacky to use ‘5 Feet High And Rising?’”
Johnny Cash also makes a cameo appearance on DMZ’s BPN Barbeque Feed “distraction” from a while back. Johnny Cash rules.
Felix has faced 14 hitters.
64.2 % of them have hit a groundball (9)
7.1 % have hit a flyball (1)
7.1 % have hit a line drive (1)
21.4 % have struck out (3)
A 9/1 G/F rate and striking out 1 in every 5 hitters. I think he’s good.
Yes finally I can watch the King pitch. Ofcourse I have to be in Sacramento to do it but hey whatever works right? And from what I have seen the kid is just straight nasty. I can’t wait till next year when I will be able to watch him more often. Now if the M’s can get a good offence.
Good lord. We know we’re not oging to score, so why drag it out.
It’s like cricket.
Wow. All this for that. Damn.
Wow. On a scale of 1-weird, that call was well, retarded. Looked to me like the momentum dragged him across the plate, then he ducked his head down. Either way, if Betancourt would’ve gone into a slide, a perfect Jason Kendall throw doesn’t get him.
I’m sure Valle is pointing out how all those pressure pitches will take it out of Blanton.
ok, the drums are annoying enough, but the trumpeter??
#59. … Really. I never knew.
You are right. I doubt K.F.H. will get the ROY. Maybe if he “won” each of his starts. Or maybe if he was brought up earlier.
I wonder….
What pitcher had the Least amount of innings/games to get the ROY?
Marco Scutaro reminds the kids, “Always wear a cup!”
.384 with the bases loaded? really?
Beltre!! w00t!!!
Friggin Dobbs.
Yes….the designated misser didn’t do his job, ya know, missing
Lopez is getting unlucky today
Quotes, baby, quotes.
Jesus, maybe Corco’s dad’s on to something.
Wow! Run support for the King…OOHH! Another one. WayToGo Dobber.
Line from an Oakland A’s blog after Sexson was HBP:
——————————–
What if Mariners retaliate?
Felix could kill one of our guys
———————————
Felix is averaging 13 pitches per inning. He’s probably got 40-45 pitches left before Grover pulls him. He’s got a shot at his first CG shutout.
That’s why Betancourt should be our SS for the forseeable future…
Betancourt ain’t too shabby with the glove, huh?
YuBet!! That kid is amazing!
Yow. Go on, girl.
watching Betancourt reminds me– I was pleased & sad to see Snelling made it into ESPN’s round-up of the August webgems, has Betancourt made it in there yet?
I have heard going up the ladder….but that guy took an elevator.
A’s fans are ready to kill our SS.
wowza
Mr. Triple!
As much as Yuni’s bat hasn’t wowed abybody yet in terms of scoring runs, how many run’s has he prevented with his Berkshire defense? – He hits a 3-bagger as I type…
Bunt Ichiro, bunt. Please.
Speaking of our hateable-to-Oakland-fans-SS….what a day.
I demand a double steal!
91. I don’t know what the stats show, but it seems that Yuni’s few hits often go for extra bases. It seems he is always driving the ball into the gap.
If I’m in a fantasy league next year that counts triples this guy has to be a first round pick. How many tripples is that so far?
9 of Betancourt’s 27 hits have gone for extra bases. That’s about average.
He’s got 9 extra base hits out of 27 total hits, if I’m not mistaken. That’s his third triple on the year, not a bad percentage, but not worth a first round pick, trust me, you’ll be able get him late.
Squeeze please!
What the crap…
I apologize.
uhoh
Wow…
just wow
Hargrove=Idiot
Reed=Punch and Judy hitter
ow. Judge Buhner might come out of retirement to sentence that bunt.
what just happened with that Reed at-bat? My game channel has frozen and started to do weird things.
Reed attempted a squeeze… that was popped up to Chavez who went on to get Betancourt at at 3B
I’m not really reading what I’m reading on gameday am I?
11 straight set down by the King.
Two pitches, two more ground balls.
Make it 12.
Man is a freak.
Other than a couple of sticky DPs, Lopez is doing alright with the glove.
WOW! That’s just sad sad sad sad on so many levels.
13 in the row
Give that man a medal, he got a hit!
oh, sure Payton can’t get it done against Chacon last night to help quash the Yankees, but Felix he can hit.
I have Dan Johnson on my fantasy team. I am not a happy man.
81 pitches for K.F.H. threw the 6 innings~! nice.
Come on, ump!
That looked pretty nice to me. 99…has Felix ever hit 99 before? That shit was scary…:o
A’s 3rd base coach blew that call, I think.
DAG GUM!
Thinking back, Reed must have studied at the Bloomquist school of bunting.
At least Sherril is up and not Thornton!
If the ump doesn’t blow the call, Felix is out of this inning under 90 pitches…that 99MPH fastball was a strike…I always hate being in unecessary situations. Sorry on the swear….caught it after submitting
I do not like hearing felix’s fastball at 93 MPH. I can’t get the game on mlb.tv, are his mechanics still ok?
My prediction: He gone!
he’s just barely missing…
He is still throwing 97.
Felix hasn’t throw n a strike in 7 pitches.
Well, he just hit 98, so yeah.
His mechanics are fine. He’s just trying to paint corners. Throw it down the middle kid. It’s freaking impossible to hit anyways.
So, do we see Felix in the 8th? Pitch count says no, But Hargrove might say otherwise…
ESPN has things totally screwed up on Gamecast … accoring to the Scoreboard at the top of Game Cast … Ms and As are in the bottom of the 50th inning.
He shouldn’t be in right now, if it were my decision.
TAP NATCH!
I think that Felix should be done.
Fortunately Morse isn’t in left. Unfortunatley, he isn’t the DH either.
.ERA going…down…
pheeeeeww.
it doesn’t really matter whether we win, of course, but it’s nice to see Felix getting out of that situation. He’s had few like it in the majors so far.
138. I don’t like him long-term but Dobbs has been hitting lately. Please go away Snoop and Aflac.
It took him 2 two pitches to get the first two outs of the 7th and 26 to get the 3rd out.
His day is done.
7 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 5 K. 107 pitches, 14 groundouts vs 2 flyouts.
107 pitches for Felix. Would you take him out now?
141: Snoop and Aflac? I’ll take them 8 days a week over Geico and Tom Basedow or whatever his name is.
I hope we get something done this off-season both offensively as well as our rotation. I just don’t want Felix to get frustrated with our anemic offense. It’s already enough pressure to be so young and have great expectations. C’mon Bavasi.
141. He has. He was a .300 hitter in AAA. It would be nice if he could hit in the Majors. And he does have a good looking swing.
oh thank goodness, the A’s have relief drummers.
Dobbs is 10 for 38 in August and September. That’s a .263 clip, better than he’s been before, but still not good — especially when you consider that he’s had just one walk and four extra-base hits in that span.
I guess it could be worse…we could have solid commercial blocks of Mariner home shopping spots.
I wonder if Sexson’s eye problem is still bothering him. Maybe he dropped some bleach in it while doing his hair.
Felix is indeed done for the day.
148. Was referring to more recent production as to why he might be playing instead of Morse. 5 for his last 10 with 3 doubles and 2 RBI entering today.
Only two things can stop Felix:
1. Arm injury
2. Mouth cancer
Jeez, I wish he would stop hitting the chaw.
Get it done Donkey.
153. You forget the influence of Freddy Garcia, his hero. And Freddy’s buddy Joel Piniero. If Felix bleaches his hair all is lost.
As you probably know, 10 at bats is a ridiculously low sample size, and there’s plenty of evidence that Dobbs is a terrible hitter.
Putz=Putz
Nice play by Raul.
With a normal set up guy, aren’t we supposed to feel comforted in the 8th inning when he comes in, rather than hoping he just gives up one run this time?
I think Fairly would say that Putz is better when he keeps the ball down.
Now ESPN Gamecast has the Mariners on defense with Putz pitching to Ichiro in the bottom of the 8th.
I know that Jeff. But Hargrove, as evidenced by previous managerial debacles, doesn’t. Hence the expression: “why he might be playing…”
Felix dropped his ERA to 1.59
Putz≤Felix
Coming late to the party — I would have pulled him. Not so much for the pitch count, but because that was a pretty stressful inning.
Drop that _ DJC. Putz
161
And Betancourt on third … and still bottom of the 50th up top
The hottest bat in the last ten games might well be Hansen.
167. When Betancourt was left to die at third, maybe he really did.
153. Speaking of chaw, Sherrill has a wad as big as his head.
Someone on here nicknamed Sherrill “The Pear”, that’s a good one. Looking forward to seeing Rafael “K/9″ Soriano sometime.
We need another run to make sure Eddie can save it for Felix.
167, 169
50 innings – they must be tired…
I think something or someone never picked up on the end of an inning, and that messed it up.
Slim Pickins… didn’t he used to play for the M’s in the 80’s?
I am amazed at how few people the A’s draw. They are in the midst of a pennant race and half the seats are empty. The Safe would be sold out, if they were in Seattle. They really need to move elsewhere. Maybe to Bellevue.
On Dobbs: He has. He was a .300 hitter in AAA. It would be nice if he could hit in the Majors. And he does have a good looking swing.
Dobbs AAA career is as follows: .271/.286/.416. There’s nothing to get excited about there.
Okay, all of those who have been saying that Eddie has been giving up runs because he wasn’t in a save situation, will have that theory tested here. I hope you are right.
Ed-die! Ed-die!
I apologize on those Dobbs stats. I see now they don’t include this season.
A sac fly is the Coors Lite Big Cold Blast? Wow.
Eddie comes through!
I loved the post-game interview with Bryan Price by Gwynn on ESPN. That was pretty high praise from a life-long batting champ like Tony.
Also called him King Felix more than once during the wrap-up…nice!
Slowest. Game. Thread. Ever.
For a King Felix start.
Dobbs = Henry Cotto, a player who has a nice looking swing, and darn it, just looks like a major leaguer.
End result, he gets a couple of hundred at bats a year and makes a lot of outs.
I missed the game, I fail at life.
Anyways, that’s kind’ve a strange line for Felix 107 pitches with only 4 hits allowed 1 walk and only 5 k’s?
I can’t believe how many groundballs he gets, amazing.
From the Associated Press:
“My age doesn’t matter,” Hernandez said. “I’m a good pitcher. … Once I’m on my game, I can’t fail.”
Henry Cotto, at least, had one Major League skill — stealing bases. Career, he was 130 for 156, a very good 83.3% clip.
Somehow I feel like Ivan has something bad to say about Cotto. I don’t know why.
Cotto = Bloomquist, Lee Tinsley, Keith Mitchell, Alonzo Powell, Dave Cochrane, Torey Lovullo, etc. in the pantheon of multi-positional, skills-impaired scrappers.
Dobbs is more in the mode of Jim Maler, Patrick Lennon, Al “Choo-Choo” Chambers, Eric Anthony, Matt Mieske, Shane Monahan, Rob Ducey, Jeff Manto … good-looking players who can do everything but play baseball.
“once I’m on my game, I can’t fail” ????
This, besides massive arm injury, has to be the biggest fear with young pitchers – the enlarged ego. Baseball is a game of failure; failure hits you in the face so many times it’s not even recognizable.
The absolute worst baseball movie I ever saw was the Scout (I think that was the name) with Albert Brooks and Brendan what’s his name from the Mummy and other execrable stuff. The premise is this scout finds a player who is absolutely perfect, who throws perfect games striking out every hitter and hits homeruns every at-bat. It’s the worst movie about baseball ever because it isn’t about baseball, it isn’t about physical ability meeting its match and struggling to turn relative failure into success. The key to a baseball game is to minimize error and maxmize success, but even then there’s all sorts of contingent elements which might cause you to fail, as in you lean into a pitch, hit it on the screws, and it goes right to the center fielder’s glove….success (in hitting the ball), success (in hitting it well, in striking it perfectly), failure (the ball is caught). Even when you succeed you can fail, and that’s the beauty of baseball.
“I can’t fail” are words that have no resonance within the game of baseball, and Felix will learn that, hopefully sooner rather than later.
I didn’t take it to be so bad, David. You’ll notice he first said, “Once I’m on my game…” To me, he wasn’t saying he’s never going to be beaten, but rather that if he’s going well, he’s (probably) not going to be. The subtext here is that he won’t always be on his game. We’ve already seen one start in which he didn’t have his command and his pitches were all over the place. Granted, he still pitched well in that outing.
I take it as Felix echoing his positive self-reinforcement: If he believes deep-down he can’t fail, then maybe he won’t. A lot of athletes (as well as actors and musicians) have little self-pumping mantras they say to themselves and to others to keep their focus and remind themselves of what they’re doing.
Jim,
Yeah, but they don’t air them publicly after their 7th big-league start. There’s a distinction between private motivation and public boasting.
JMB,
My argument is that even when someone in this sport “succeeds”, they fail – you make a good pitch and it just happens to be hit through a diving infield. Maybe he hasn’t experienced the radical contingency of a baseball game yet; maybe everything has gone according to his plan from day #1 and, when he’s executing the plan, he “can’t fail”. But sometimes you execute the plan and still fail, and this display of hubris tells me he hasn’t learned that lesson yet.
Without being there and hearing his tone and the context in which his comments were given, we can’t assume he’s boasting.
I read “I can’t fail” as “Even if I don’t win, I’ve won because I executed my game plan. I made my pitches, located there where I wanted, and gave my team a chance to win.”
How about Felix’ comment after his first home start: “Nothing is hard in this world. You just have to work hard and get the most out of it that you can.”
I’d say there’s a great deal that’s hard in this world, and I even thought so when I was 19. Clearly, the guy needs to watch Bull Durham and review the section where Crash Davis teaches Nuke about “quotes.”
ESPN.com front page link: “King Felix beats A’s.”
yes, tone and context matter, which is exactly what we won’t get from an AP report….
but still: Once I’m on my game, I can’t fail.
“I’m on my game” seems to be the successful operation of the game plan. The “once…I can’t fail” is an addition that is distinct from the first thought, though, meaning that “I can’t fail” can’t mean “even if I don’t win, I’ve won” because that’s what “I’m on my game” meant. So what does he mean by the “I can’t fail”? Who could say such a thing?
Answer: a 19 year old kid (we all remember that age with an even mixture of nostalgia and horror) with a golden arm (which none of us can remember, or anticipate, or enjoy).
But I love baseball because its harshness, its temerity to say that “the best who will ever play me will succeed 3-4 times out of 10″ That sport can’t comprehend a kid who says “I can’t fail” in whatever context. And between baseball and the kid with a golden arm, I’ll take baseball and put down the farm.
Do we really want him weighing every word so carefully that what comes out is completely canned? I don’t.
Give the kid a break. He just went out, kicked gluteal tissue and is insanely happy about it. He offered an unscripted demonstration of his utter joy. I’ll take it. If baseball’s stodgy cultural defenders want to take offense, so be it. Me, I like I’m-happy-to-be-alive Felix. Let him enjoy the moment. Worrying about his ego is utterly wasted energy.
I’ve just read too much Greek Tragedy. Every self-described hero fails, and is often immiserated in the process. I’m enjoying every second of Felix’s baseball gifts, but they, like he and me and everything else, are finite, and flesh and fastballs will fail.
Wow….parse-o-matic here at the USSM!
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€
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€
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.