Félix Abraham Hernández García, nicknamed "King Félix", is a Venezuelan professional baseball starting pitcher for the Seattle Mariners of Major League Baseball. He made his MLB debut in 2005... (wikipedia)
I can't say anything I don't love about Seattle.
I'm going to say this - to the people in Seattle, to all the people in Seattle that trust me, that believe in me - I'm going to say this: I'm not going to disappoint anybody.
When you work somewhere and you feel comfortable, you don't want to leave. You want to stay there forever.
I don't want to be just an average guy. I want to do whatever possible to win a lot of games. I'm a competitor.
Every year, you have to keep adjusting. I'm 28; I'm not 19 anymore. You have to work harder now.
In '05, '06, '07 and '08, I wasn't throwing any changeups at all. Maybe two or three per game. In '09, I started playing with the grip, started throwing it in the bullpen and playing catch. It came out really good.
My age doesn't matter. I'm a good pitcher. Once I'm on my game, I can't fail.
I was frustrated at myself, not with the team. I was trying to keep the team in the game so that they could come back from behind.
I was frustrated at myself, not with the team.
I have fun, but I think about the games. But, I don't think I obsess about it.
I don't know. At the end of spring training I felt ready to pitch.
I don't expect anything. I just stay focused on my game. If you work hard, this is what can happen.
I felt a little nervous. I know I pitched well, but I can't be happy because the team lost.
I feel fine now. It's not an excuse, I really feel fine now.
It hurt. At first, I couldn't feel the ball.
I threw it and it just stayed up there. It was an error.
I think those kinds of games are going to make me a better pitcher. Without my command, I just worked harder to do the job, to keep my team in the game.
Pitching against (Johnson) was an honor -- a great joy. Even though I lost, it was an honor to be out there against him.
I was told that harder wasn't necessarily better, and that batters were just sitting there looking for the fastball. I had to go back to pitching, hitting the corners and mixing up my stuff.
Today was one of those days. Nothing really seemed to work. It was a bad game.
Try this, try that. He'd played baseball a lot, too.
Everything was working and I think that was the best I have thrown (this spring). I think I have reached a good point in getting ready, and I wish for the season to start.
There's no chance of that happening to me. I've received a good education from my family.
I stay focused on baseball. I go to the field, go to my apartment, that's all. ... I don't need to do nothing.
The whole world can hit a fastball if it's in the right place. I just try to change it up.
It was an honor to be on the same field with Randy.
Rafael Chaves called me, but not Hugo Chavez.
It was really important to me. It would have been my first major league complete game. It didn't happen and I'm upset that the team lost.
It was a tough play, so I don't feel like it was an error.
I tried to throw my breaking ball, but nothing seemed to work, so I was behind in the count a lot. And when I threw the fastball, they hit it, and it found holes. Tonight was one of those nights when nothing seemed to work.
It's fine with me. I know they are trying to protect my arm. They know more than me.
They are like any other team. I just try to do my job.
They were the first ones to offer me a contract. I just wanted to hear from other teams. It was my decision. I liked Seattle the best. I like the people very much.
It was just two pitches, two runs, two mistakes. They were high.
After that it took me a little bit to get back on track.
I'm fine. I don't feel any kind of pressure. I was just a little bit off with my command.
I know this is a physical game. But the mental part of it is so important. It's important for me and important for the team.
I'm uncomfortable with it. When I thought of playing baseball, I never thought of that. It was never important to me. I am a little tired of it, and I've had enough.
I didn't expect all that. I'm proud of myself.
He told me to keep working hard. That was pretty special.
I don't think any of the things (that have been speculated on) about communication are a problem. I'd say we already have pretty good communication.
He really deserves the job and it's going to be great working with him. When I worked with him, it wasn't like working with a pitching coach. It was like working with a friend.