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Let's start right off with today's "fun fact"...Felix Hernandez has made 14 starts so far this season; in those games the Seattle Mariners are 7-7. Yes, Hernandez is great. However, you can win games started by the King -- in fact, opponents have done just that in 4 of his last 6 starts.
The Mariners, you see, have scored 13 runs in the 7 games Felix has started but the team has lost. That's where A.J. Griffin comes in: He takes the ball today for the A's knowing that the margin for error is small. Overall, Felix is 7-4 with a sparkling 2.49 ERA, dwarfing Griffin's 5-5, 3.78 ERA. To win, the A's will probably need to turn DPs, catch liners to 1B, and run the bases properly.
Guess what? They're all back! Donaldson: check. Coco: check. Cespedes: check. It is, if nothing else, a real lineup trying to dethrone "FeHern".
The starting lineups:
2. John Jaso C |