We Could Be Witnessing the Rebirth of Felix Hernandez at Braves Spring Training
By Jack Murphy
Felix Hernandez was one of the most dominant pitchers in the first half of the 2010's. However, in the latter half of the previous decade King Felix did not put up the "royal" numbers we have seen in the glory days of his stint with Seattle Mariners.
It's quite possible that all King Felix needed was a change of scenery as the 33-year-old right hander has been dealing so far this Spring with the Atlanta Braves.
#Braves' Félix Hernández has a 2.08 ERA in 3 spring starts, has allowed 7 hits, 2 runs and 3 walks with 8 strikeouts in 8 2/3 innings.
— David O'Brien (@DOBrienATL) March 3, 2020
King Felix is no longer relying solely on the K's to rack up outs. He is focusing more on the location of his pitches rather than the movement of them he relied on for so long. So far, Felix's approach has panned out well.
@Braves Felix Hernandez looked sharp again.. 4IP, 1ER, 2K, 2BB
— Braves All In (@InBraves) March 3, 2020
No longer considered a strikeout pitcher at this point in his career, Felix is relying on location and keeping hitters off balance to be successful as he continues to reinvent his game #Braves #ChopOn pic.twitter.com/4lLeVSYlSI
Last season was the worst of his career as he posted a 1-8 record, an ERA of 6.40, and a mere 57 strikeouts. Hernandez is looking to bounce back with his new home in Atlanta.
The revival of Felix is a storyline the MLB would love to have. After a few disastrous seasons with an underwhelming Mariners roster, Hernandez has the opportunity to revitalize his career with a contender in the National League.
What's a better team to do that with than one that won the NL East a season ago? Starting pitching was a concern for this Atlanta team going into 2020, but if they can revive Hernandez to even a semblance of his former self, they'll have an anchor in the middle of their rotation.