If the pitcher's mound is King Felix's throne, he'll have to wait a little longer to take it. The Seattle Mariners announced that ace pitcher Felix Hernandez will skip his start on Wednesday against the Houston Astros as he continues to suffer from back stiffness, according to MLB.com.
Hernandez was removed from his previous outing on Sept. 2 in Kansas City after 6.2 innings because he felt stiffness in his lower back, causing him to leave the game. Hernandez, 26, was scheduled to start Sunday, but it was pushed back to Wednesday after the right-hander felt discomfort while doing a bullpen session on flat ground Saturday. Now, his start will once again be pushed back and he won't throw on Wednesday.
Hernandez, who won the AL Cy Young Award in 2010, currently ranks third in the American League in strikeouts (200) and fourth in innings-pitched (194.1), and if he reaches the 200-innings pitched plateau this season, it will be the sixth straight year he's accomplished that feat. Hernandez notched 200 strikeouts for the fifth consecutive year. He's made 29 starts this season, posting a 12-9 record with a 3.01 ERA.
Brandon Maurer, 23, will toe the rubber for Seattle instead of Hernandez Wednesday. Maurer started 10 games at the beginning of the year before switching over to a long-man role out of the bullpen, and is 4-7 with a 6.85 ERA on the year.
The Mariners are being cautious with their ace because they don't want him to aggravate the injury in what is a lost season for Seattle. Seattle enter its game against Houston tonight in fourth place, 18 games behind the division-leading Oakland Athletics(83-60). The Mariners (65-78) are also 13.5 games out of the second wildcard spot currently held by the Tampa Bay Rays (78-64).
The only team worse than Seattle in the AL West is tonight's opposition. Houston is a Major League-worst 47-96 this year in its inaugural season in the AL and sits 31.5 games out of the wildcard and 36 games out of the division race.
There's no word on when Hernandez will make his next start, but for now Seattle is being cautious with their King.
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