Hernandez may start Thursday

[Porter]

SEATTLE -- The much-anticipated Major League debut of Felix Hernandez could be two days away.
The Mariners' brightest pitching prospect reportedly will join the team in Detroit on Tuesday and get his first big-league start in Thursday afternoon's series finale against the Tigers at Comerica Park.

The 19-year-old from Venezuela would become the first teenager to start a game since Todd Van Poppel made his first, and only, start of the 1991 season while with the Athletics. Dwight Gooden was 19 in 1984, when he made 31 starts for the Mets.

Hernandez recently returned from a month-long hiatus because of bursitis in his right shoulder. After making one relief appearance, he returned to the Triple-A Tacoma Rainiers' rotation Saturday and tossed four hitless innings, striking out seven and walking two.

He was 9-4 with a 2.25 ERA for Tacoma, holding opposing hitters to a .196 batting average. He has been especially effective recently, going 3-0 with a 1.05 ERA in his last eight outings.

http://seattle.mariners.mlb.com/NASA...=.jsp&c_id=sea

This is going to be a huge game in M's History!

[Element]

And it isn't even going to be on tv.

BTW, I like the Felix Sigs, everyone.

[MarinersFan87]

Haha, yeah, we're a little stoked for his debut.

Porter stole mine, so I stole yours that you made for Porter.

Lets go Felix!

[Dam8610]

"The Filth" makes it debut soon. Interesting. I heard that his start may be pushed back to Friday, which I would enjoy, because I'd get to see him pitch (the Mariners play the White Sox on friday). Here's selfishly hoping

[MarinersFan87]

They keep on moving Moyer back, so I doubt they'd start him over Felix. I think that a game against Detroit is the perfect situation, there will be plenty of games to watch Felix play.

[Dam8610]

So, what did he look like? Did his pitches live up to the hype? Or did I luck out and he's pitching today?

[MarinersFan87]

Sick. That is apparently the word. I wanted to order the game on MLBTV but my internet was out all day so I could not. He was untouchable after the first inning apparently. Get this, he did not allow one fly ball. Everything was either on the ground, a walk, or a strikeout. Sick.

[MarinersFan87]

Dave Cameron from the USSM is already incredibly high on Felix:

There are a ton of great pitching prospects in the minors. Guys like Adam Miller have great arms too. But, you know, here’s the thing about Felix: he is the rare prospect that has ridiculous potential and is already an all-star major league player.

Seriously, right now, Felix is one of the best pitchers in the American League. If he never gets any better, he’ll still be a frontline starter. Here’s a few comparisons for you, just based on what Felix is today, and not projecting any improvement at all:

Carlos Zambrano

Brandon Webb

Daniel Cabrera

Jeremy Bonderman

These guys have very similar statistical profiles: extreme groundball rates, high walk rates, high strikeout rates. They walk a ton of guys, and their command is certainly not a strength. But they induce so many groundballs, they essentially negate the extra base hit against them, and they strike out enough batters that the guys who get on base via the single get stranded at first base more often than not. Their performances this year bear out how good you can be without throwing strikes. They have Fielding Independant ERAs of 3.69, 3.82, 4.00, and 4.01 respectively, putting them among the top 30 pitchers in the game.

As of today, Felix’s command isn’t very good. But it legitimately doesn’t matter. Yesterday, he faced 20 batters, and 11 of them beat the ball into the ground. Not one man managed to get the ball in the air. 0 flyballs in 5 innings. That’s absurd.

Felix has all the potential to be a hall of fame pitcher. But, what sets him apart from the usual “prospect” is the fact that he doesn’t have to improve one bit to be an all-star. He’s a star level major league contributor at 19. Guys who can play at an elite level in the major leagues before they turn 20 almost always turn into superstars.

With Felix, its not projection. He’s great right now.

Already an all-star caliber player?

[awefullspellare]

Damn this kid sounds great. Will be awesome for the Mariners!

[Porter]

Pudge Rodriguez said This kid can pitch. Guillen was talking about his good stuff. With Nageotte and Madstrich coming back soon. It should be intresting from here on out.