Mariners’ Felix Hernandez ends spring on up note, looks ahead to another opening day start

PEORIA, Ariz. – While spring numbers are rarely if ever something an established ballplayer should fret about, it is always good to end the spring on a high note. If the Mariners had one player they could bless with a good spring, there is little question it would be Felix Hernandez.

Coming off the toughest year of his career and realizing that changes had to be made, this spring needed to be different for Felix – and it was. What happens when the page is flipped and the lights go on in Game 1 of the regular season remains to be seen, but Felix did indeed end his spring on an up note.

“That was about as sharp has he had been,” manager Scott Servais said of Felix’s two-inning outing Tuesday in which he gave one run on one hit and struck out four Diamondbacks. “The stuff was good, sequencing good. He’s in a good spot.”

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“I feel really good,” Felix said in the clubhouse after coming out of the game. “I feel like the pitches are there, around the zone, and I had a good breaking ball.”

The early returns on the offseason work he put in have been good, according to Felix.

“I feel stronger,” he said. “I feel much better with my legs, my mechanics. And like you see, all the pitches I throw are down in the zone with a good break.”

Felix has looked sharp in his last three starts, including his five-inning appearance for Team Venezuela against USA in the World Baseball Classic. The curveball has been there all spring and the changeup came along a little quicker than it has in recent memory.

But what has been different about Felix, in addition to his physical changes, has been his fastball – not the two-seamer he has mainly thrown in recent years, but the four-seamer that we have seen more of this spring. While he is still working on elevating the pitch – he didn’t get quite high enough with one against Brandon Drury Tuesday that resulted in a home run – he does appear to be more open into incorporating it into his sequences than he did earlier in the spring.

“I am using a lot of fastballs, today and in the game before, and it has been working,” he said. “When my fastball is right there it makes everything better.”

Next up for Felix: his 10th career opening day start, a spotlight he still relishes playing under.

“It is always an honor to be an opening day starter,” he said. “I’ve done it a few times. I like the challenge. It’s opening day. It’s still special. It’s a new season. A lot of eyes watching you, a lot of people watching.”

As for the 24 teammates who will stand on the third base line while he warms up in the bullpen Monday in Houston during the opening day ceremonies, Felix is excited about the group.

“We’re looking pretty good,” he said. “I have confidence in all of the guys, and they are confident, too. They are ready to go.”

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