HERNANDEZ PITCHER PERFECT FOR MARINERS,
Seattle’s ace never struggled in 1-0 win
SEATTLE • King Felix now has a crowning achievement.
Felix Hernandez pitched the Seattle Mariners’ first perfect game and the 23rd in baseball history, overpowering the Tampa Bay Rays in a brilliant 1-0 victory Wednesday.
The 2010 AL Cy Young Award winner has long talked of his desire to achieve pitching perfection. He finally accomplished it against the Rays, striking out the side twice and finishing with 12 strikeouts.
It was the third perfect game in baseball this season — the first time that has happened — joining gems by Chicago’s Philip Humber against the Mariners in April and San Francisco’s Matt Cain versus Houston in June. More than half of all perfect games — 12 — have come in the last 25 seasons.
This also was the sixth nohitter in the majors this season, three of them at Safeco Field.
Humber threw his gem in Seattle, then six Mariners pitchers combined to hold the Los Angeles Dodgers hitless at the park on June 8. For the Rays, it was an all-too-familiar feeling. This was the third time in four seasons they had a perfect game pitched against them, following efforts by Dallas Braden in 2010 and Mark Buehrle in 2009.
“I don’t have any words to explain this,” Hernandez said to the crowd, speaking on the field after the final out. “I’ve been working so hard to throw one and today is for you guys.”
Desmond Jennings pinch hit for Jose Lobaton to open the ninth.
Hernandez got ahead 12 before Jennings fouled off two straight and Hernandez fanned him on a 92 mph fastball down in the zone. Jeff Keppinger hit for Elliot Johnson and grounded out to shortstop on a 1-2 pitch.
With one out to go, Sean Rodriguez got ahead 2-0 in the count. Hernandez came back with two straight breaking balls for strikes and ended perfection with a called third strike on his 113th pitch.
Hernandez (11-5) threw his arms up to the sky and was mobbed by teammates at the pitcher’s mound. He embraced catcher John Jaso for a few seconds and then shared hugs with the rest of his teammates.
“It was in my mind, the whole game, it was in my mind,” Hernandez said.
Hernandez likes to wear his hat crooked to the side — many of his pitches weren’t very straight, either.
The Venezuelan ace had the Rays swinging over his sharp curve all afternoon, with Evan Longoria, Ben Zobrist and Carlos Pena each striking out in the eighth chasing breaking balls.
With a fastball in the mid90s mph and an effective change, Hernandez simply wasn’t hittable. He also wasn’t about to walk anyone.
It was the second no-hitter this season for the Mariners — doubling the franchise’s total entering the year.
“He never did struggle. He kept making good pitches the whole way through,” Jaso said. “The last at-bat of the game, falling down 2-0, he just kept his confidence. It was great.”
The most concerning moment may have been Sam Fuld’s deep fly ball to right centre leading off the game that Eric Thames tracked down on the edge of the warning track.
Longoria’s line drive leading off the fifth eluded Hernandez’s glove but was directly at second baseman Dustin Ackley.
Seattle’s only run came thanks to the aggressive baserunning of Brendan Ryan.