Felix King of Kauffman, Mariners Bats Break Out, Beat K.C. 8-3

After a disastrous second start for Felix Hernandez, and an equally disastrous game last night for the Mariners, both needed to get right against Kansas City. On Tuesday, the duel mission was accomplished.

On a drizzly night in Kansas City, the Mariners wasted no time getting on the board. After being hit by a pitch, Dee Gordon stole second, and third, before scoring on a Mitch Haniger single. The Mariners would never relinquish that lead.

While the offense was solid all night long, the real headlines belong to The King Felix Hernandez. After a terrible performance in San Francisco, Hernandez worked through some early command issues, and turned in a much-needed solid performance.

Hernandez scattered 6 hits over 5.2 innings, recording 3 strikeouts and 1 walk. Overall, his final stat line wasn’t indicative of how well he pitched. Felix showed good command of his fastball. He had a sharp curveball.

On the night, he made just a handful of mistakes, including a hanging curveball that Mike Moustakas deposited into the fountains at Kauffman stadium.

Offensively, the charge was led by Jean Segura, who finished just an HR shy of the cycle. Robinson Cano reached base 3 times, including an RBI double to dead center field. And Kyle Seager clubbed a 2 run double to left-center to cap the scoring at 8 runs.

Finally, the bullpen came in and pitched scoreless ball, led by Dan Altavilla’s 1.1 innings of shutout ball. Edwin Diaz came into the game for the first time in 5 days, and threw a 1-2-3 inning with 2 strikeouts.

The Mariners and Royals will face off in the rubber game of the series tomorrow at 11:15. James Paxton toes the rubber for Seattle. Paxton is coming off a solid start against Minnesota. He will look to get deeper into this start.

Next: Kyle Seager is Good: A Mariners Fan's Yearly Reminder

Paxton will be opposed by LHP Danny Duffy, as Seattle attempts to collect their second series win of 2018.