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Hernandez yet to rediscover early season form

Posted by Vince

June 16, 2007 6:38 a.m. • 0 comments

MARINERS

What started out so promising – 5-0 to open the 10-game road trip – is now almost .500. The M’s loss Friday was their third consecutive defeat on this trip, but more importantly, it happened in large part because Felix Hernandez was, well, ineffective.

Which is worrisome. For Seattle to win the American League West, it has to get better starting pitching than it did in the first third of the season. And some of the starters – Miguel Batista, Cha Seung Baek , yes even Jeff Weaver – are showing improvement (Jarrod Washburn has been pretty good consistently). But Felix, the ace, has struggled.

Without him dominating like he’s capable, the task of winning the West might be impossible. After Friday’s 5-1 loss, the M’s dropped to third place in the division.

Today (4:05; KSKN-22; 920-AM) the M’s send Baek (3-2, 5.22 ERA) out against veteran Woody Williams (2-9, 5.51) in another attempt to ensure an above-.500 trip.

Today’s hot list …

• Hernandez’s outing was the lead in every story, including the Times, the P-I and the News Tribune. From Houston, here is the Chronicle story.

• The offense has gone a little cold the past two games as well, with only Willie Bloomquist’s inside-the-park home run as a highlight Friday. The complete trip around the bases surprised even Bloomquist.

• Jake Wood’s stay was a short one. The left-hander headed back to Tacoma, replaced by another lefty, Ryan Feierabend, who had to miss out on a reunion with his new bride.

• And our question of the day …

• What is the M’s most pressing need right now?