The line score says Felix Hernandez looked better in Sunday's start than he did earlier in the week, and yes, he did have better command, but this still wasn't what we expect from Hernandez. He allowed eight hits and three walks in five innings, for a Doug Davis-like WHIP. On Tuesday Hernandez was wild, and most of the hits he allowed were grounders or flares that found a hole. I saw it with my own eyes, even though Hernandez apologists want to believe their pitcher was dominant that night. He wasn't. On Sunday Hernandez put men on base in every inning, and really, the fact he allowed only two runs was a bit of a gift. So was he better? It was a start, let's put it that way.
• In the first inning he allowed only base runner, Mike Cameron, then picked him off.
• In the second Adrian Gonzalez and Josh Bard hit ground-rule doubles, and not on dinky popups either, and Hernandez hit Kevin Kouzmanoff with a pitch. He fanned Russell Branyan and Terrmel Sledge to escape with only one run allowed.
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Eric Karabell
