SEATTLE — King Felix now has a consummate achievement.
Felix Hernandez pitched the Seattle Mariners’ aboriginal absolute bold and the 23rd in baseball history, cutting the Tampa Bay Rays in a ablaze 1-0 achievement on Wednesday.
With Wednesday’s absolute bold adjoin the iron on transfers Tampa Bay Rays the latest example, Mariners ace Felix Hernandez afresh showed why he’s the attenuate archetype of a bullpen who not alone lived up to the advertising but far exceeded it, writes Matt Meyers. SweetSpot
The 2010 AL Cy Young Award champ continued has talked of his admiration to accomplish casting perfection. He assuredly able it adjoin the Rays, arresting out the ancillary alert and finishing with 12 strikeouts.
It was the third absolute bold in baseball heat transfers this division — a aboriginal — abutting gems by Chicago’s Philip Humber adjoin the Mariners in April and San Francisco’s Matt Cain adjoin Houston in June. Added than bisected of all perfectos — 12 — accept appear in the accomplished 25 seasons.
This aswell was the sixth no-hitter in the majors this season, three of them at Safeco Field. Humber threw his gem in Seattle, again six Mariners pitchers accumulated to authority the Los Angeles Dodgers hitless at the esplanade on June 8. Prior to Wednesday, no aggregation has anytime had a accumulated no-hitter custom t-shirt and a complete bold no-hitter in the aforementioned season.
For the Rays, it was an all-too-familiar feeling. This was the third time in four seasons they had a absolute bold pitched adjoin them, afterward efforts by Dallas Braden in 2010 and Mark Buehrle in 2009. They’ve been no-hit four times over the accomplished four seasons.
“I don’t accept any words to explain this,” Hernandez said to the crowd, speaking on the acreage afterwards the final out. “I’ve been alive so harder to bandy one and today is for you guys.”
The Venezuelan-born Felix Hernandez is the additional amateur built-in in Latin America to bandy a absolute game. Dennis Martinez, built-in in Nicaragua, threw a absolute bold in 1991. In fact, he is the additional amateur built-in alfresco of the United States to bandy a absolute game
Desmond Jennings compression hit for Jose Lobaton to accessible the ninth. Hernandez got advanced 1-2 afore Jennings befuddled off two beeline and Hernandez fanned him on a 92 mph fastball down in the zone. Jeff Keppinger batted custom iron on transfers for Elliot Johnson and ashore out to ambush on a 1-2 pitch.
With one out to go, Sean Rodriguez got advanced 2-0 in the count. Afterwards ambit the mound, Hernandez came aback with two beeline breaking assurance for strikes and concluded accomplishment with a alleged third bang on his 113th pitch.
“I went 2-0 and I just took a little walk, took a breach and he alleged a slider. I had been afterward him the accomplished game, so I threw a slider and he swing,” Hernandez said. “It was a acceptable affair I followed this guy.”
Hernandez (11-5) threw his accoutrements up to the sky and was chock-full by teammates at the pitcher’s mound. He accepted catcher John Jaso for a few abnormal and again aggregate hugs with the blow of his teammates.
“It was in my mind, the accomplished game, it was in my mind,” Hernandez said.
Hernandez brand to abrasion his hat agee to the ancillary — abounding of his pitches weren’t actual straight, either.
The 26-year-old right-hander had the baseball number Rays accepted over his aciculate ambit all afternoon, with Evan Longoria, Ben Zobrist and Carlos Pena anniversary arresting out in the eighth block breaking balls.
With a fastball in the mid-90s mph and an able change, Hernandez artlessly wasn’t hittable. He aswell wasn’t about to airing anyone, and got the final out afterwards starting off Rodriguez with two balls.
The Rays seemed to try addition address to agitate Hernandez, and that aswell failed. With two outs in the seventh, administrator Joe Maddon came out to altercate afterwards bowl adjudicator Rob Drake alleged bang one on a ambiguous angle to Matt Joyce. Maddon ashore about for a minute or so to altercate and if he left, Hernandez was still appropriate in rhythm.
“I was babble at Joe to get … out of there,” Seattle administrator Eric Wedge said.
Riding down in a awash elevator afterwards the game, Seattle accepted administrator Jack Zduriencik jokingly captivated his corpuscle buzz to his ear and said “no, we’re not trading Felix.”
It was the additional no-hitter this division for the Mariners — acceleration the franchise’s absolute entering the year — and third absolute at Safeco Acreage afterwards the esplanade went added than a dozen years after one. Afterwards Humber’s absolute game, a six-pack of Seattle pitchers tossed a accumulated no-hitter adjoin the Dodgers in June.
So Abounding No-Hitters
Felix Hernandez’s absolute bold was the sixth no-hitter befuddled this season. The six such amateur abode 2012 abaft alone 1884, 1990 and 1991 for a lot of no-hitters in a individual division in MLB history.
“He never did struggle. He kept authoritative acceptable pitches the accomplished way through,” Jaso said. “The endure at-bat of the game, falling down 2-0, he just kept his confidence. It was great.”
The six no-hitters is two shy of the almanac set in 1884, one abbreviate of the absolute in anniversary of the 1990 and 1991 seasons.
“Hard to believe. It’s harder to believe. Harder to believe, too,” baseball Commissioner Bud Selig said. “Struck out 5 of the endure six hitters. That’s appealing good.”
Unlike Cain’s absolute bold in June, Hernandez didn’t charge the advice of a career-high in strikeouts or amazing catches.
Hernandez cruised through the aboriginal 5 innings with little trouble. The a lot of apropos moment may accept been Sam Fuld’s abysmal fly brawl to appropriate centermost arch off the bold that Eric Thames tracked down on the bend of the admonishing track. Longoria’s band drive arch off the fifth eluded Hernandez’s cuff but was anon at additional baseman Dustin Ackley.
Hernandez addled out the ancillary in the sixth, backward Rodriguez on a analysis beat to accomplishment the inning and catastrophe the anatomy accepting befuddled just 69 pitches. Fuld broke out to additional to accessible the seventh and B.J. Upton ashore out to ambush for the additional out.
After Maddon’s ejection, Joyce formed the calculation to 3-2, Hernandez’s third three-ball count, and hit an inning-ending groundout.
Seattle didn’t do abundant in the basal of the seventh, but it was a continued inning for Hernandez on the bench, continued even added by Ryan’s nine-pitch at-bat that culminated in an inning-ending grounder.
The delay didn’t bassinet Hernandez, who addled out Longoria on a bitter breaking brawl to alpha the eighth. With chants of “Let’s Go Felix!” from the crowd, Hernandez addled out Zobrist. The carol grew in aggregate as Hernandez got advanced 1-2 to Pena and he accomplished off his additional inning arresting of arresting out the ancillary with a punchout of Pena.
SportsNation: King Felix’s absolute game
SportsNation Felix Hernandez has befuddled the third absolute bold of the season. Which of the three feats of accomplishment was a lot of impressive? Vote!
It was the fifth time this division Hernandez has addled out 10 or more. A lot of of his outs were on the infield with alone 5 fly brawl outs.
“You could bandy any calendar out there today and it’s abutting to the aforementioned result,” Jaso said.
Seattle’s alone run came acknowledgment to the advancing baserunning of Ryan. He led off the third with his aboriginal hit in 10 at-bats adjoin Jeremy Hellickson (7-8) with a aciculate individual to left. He was still continuing at aboriginal with two outs if he got a abundant jump on a action that bounced in the clay and able Lobaton. Ryan never hesitated at additional and fabricated it all the way to third. He again jogged home if Jesus Montero followed with a individual to larboard for the alone run