8/24/19: Open Game Thread - Félix’s return

The first mention of Félix Hernández on Lookout Landing comes February 19, 2005. It’s in a Spring Training note, telling us Joel Piniero has taken on a mentoring role for Hernández.

~Sticking with pitching news, Joel Pineiro has been assigned the task of mentoring Felix Hernandez (who desperately needs an original nickname). The fit makes sense, as both speak Spanish, and Pineiro was invited to the big league camp when he was 19. While seeing Beltre and Sexson don their Mariner uni’s is going to be a big story, Hernandez (how about El Gato?) is going to be the biggest Mariner story this spring.

15 years, a Cy Young, and one slightly catchier nickname later, King Félix will be making one of his final starts in Seattle tonight. After being mentioned as an intriguing tidbit in between Bret Boone’s comments about Jose Canseco’s steroid accusations, and Richie Sexson’s DUI, it’s been an incredible decade and a half for Seattle’s longest-tenured pitcher in franchise history. After spending most of this season on the shelf with shoulder stiffness, he’s back at last. It’s been a long time since Félix has truly been cause for unmitigated joy, but tonight we celebrate all the same.

Game Time: 6:10 PM PT
TV: ROOT
Radio: 710 AM ESPN
Online: MLB TV