SPORTS
Wednesday, February 13, 2019
East Oregonian
B3
Hernandez entering critical last season of Seattle contract
By JACK MAGRUDER
Associated Press
PEORIA, Ariz. — Every
day for several years, Felix
Hernandez has walked past
large photos of himself and
Randy Johnson — the Seat-
tle Mariners’ only Cy Young
Award winners — in the
hallway leading to the club-
house of their spring train-
ing complex.
King Felix will make
those walks for perhaps the
last time this year, with a
bigger goal as motivation.
“I know this is my final
year, but I don’t think I am
done,” the 33-year-old Her-
nandez said on Tuesday fol-
lowing Seattle’s first spring
training workout. “I think I
AP Photo/Charlie Riedel
Seattle Mariners players walk to a practice field during
spring training baseball practice on Tuesday in Peoria, Ariz.
can do a lot of good things,
and it is going to be a push
for my Hall of Fame career.
It means a lot. Now Edgar
(Martinez) is in the Hall of
Fame. We’ll see.”
Hernandez, who has 168
victories and a career 3.34
ERA, is trying to reverse
recent trends entering the
final season of a seven-year
contract that calls for a $27
million salary.
His fastball average
velocity dropped to a career-
low 90.4 mph last season
and his ERA was a career-
high 5.55 in 29 outings. He
briefly was moved to the
bullpen for his lone career
relief appearance, a move
that did not sit well.
But as spring training
begins, Hernandez has a
spot in the starting rotation,
even if it is not as his cus-
tomary No. 1.
“I don’t care what hap-
pened last season,” he said.
“This is a new year. I came
here ready to go. Let’s see
what is going to happen.”
Yusei Kikuchi, Mike
Leake and Marco Gon-
zales are the top three in
the Mariners rotation, and
left-hander Wade LeBlanc
pitched well last season. Top
prospect Justus Sheffield
was acquired from the Yan-
kees in the James Paxton
deal, although he is likely
to start the season in the
minors.
Hernandez will look to
recover from a second half
in which he was 0-7 with
a 6.44 ERA in his last 10
appearances. His percentage
of swinging strikes was at a
career low, and opponents’
contact on pitches in the
strike zone was a career high.
“He’s struggled the last
few years. We’ll see what
it brings,” Seattle manager
Scott Servais said. “Felix is
a competitor. He is a very
proud player, like many vet-
eran players are. He wants to
get back to doing his thing.
We are going to let him.”
With a lower velocity has
come adjustments. Hernan-
dez began the changes last
season, when he threw 27.9
percent curveballs, the high-
est percentage of curves in
his career. The rate was dou-
ble than it was when he was
blowing hitters away with
96-98 mph velocity.
“You have to keep
adjusting until you are on
the top, and certainly Felix
has been on top before,”
Servais said.
BRIEFLY
Free Fishing Weekend set
Planning a fishing trip on President’s
Day weekend? You’re in luck.
On Saturday, Feb. 16 and Sunday, Feb.
17, no licenses or tags (including a com-
bined angling tag or a Columbia River
Basin endorsement) are required to fish,
crab, or clam anywhere in Oregon for both
residents and non-residents.
All other fishing regulations still apply,
including closures, bag limits, and size
restrictions. During this time of year, Ore-
gon Fish and Wildlife recommends fishing
for winter steelhead on the coast, stocked
hatchery rainbow trout in the Willamette
Valley and mid-coast lakes, and ice fishing
in northeast and southeast Oregon.
For the latest on fishing conditions and
regulations, the Oregon Department of
Fish & Wildlife’s report is updated online
every Thursday.
AP Photo/Nati Harnik, File
This June 28, 2018, file photo, shows Oregon State Adley Rutschman hitting an RBI single to
score Cadyn Grenier during the third inning of Game 3 against Arkansas in the NCAA College
World Series baseball finals in Omaha, Neb.
Here are 10 key players to
watch in college baseball
Associated Press
Ten players to watch in
college baseball this season:
C Adley Rutschman,
Oregon State
Rutschman is widely
projected as the No. 1 over-
all pick in the Major League
Baseball draft in June. He
batted .408 over 67 games
and turned in one of the best
individual performances in
College World Series his-
tory, setting a record with
17 hits and batting .567 with
13 RBIs while earning Most
Outstanding Player for the
national champion Beavers.
1B Andrew Vaughn,
California
One of the best offen-
sive seasons in program his-
tory led to Vaughn winning
the Golden Spikes Award as
national player of the year.
His .402 batting average
ranked third in Cal history,
and he matched the pro-
gram record and was sec-
ond nationally with 23 home
runs.
3B
Casey
Martin,
Arkansas
Martin, who along with
teammate Heston Kjers-
tad formed the best fresh-
man combination in the
SEC, batted a team-lead-
ing .345 with 14 doubles
and 13 home runs. Mar-
tin upped his game in the
NCAA Tournament, leading
the Razorbacks with a .352
average, including .357 in
the CWS. He had eight hits
in his first at-bats in Omaha.
LHP Graeme Stinson,
Duke
The 6-5, 260-pound
junior throws mid to upper
90s, owns the best slider at
this level and is poised to be
the first college pitcher taken
in the draft. Stinson moves
to the top spot in the rota-
tion after working mostly as
a reliever last season
OF/DH Bryant Pack-
ard, East Carolina
It’s going to be tough
for the left-handed hitting
junior to top last year. He
led the American Athletic
Conference in batting aver-
age (.406), hits (89), slug-
ging percentage (.671) and
total bases (147) and ranked
among the league leaders in
on-base percentage (.462),
home runs (14), runs (51)
and RBIs (50).
OF/IF Austin Martin,
Vanderbilt
The sophomore might
be the most versatile player
in the country. He made 58
starts last season at six dif-
ferent positions. The Com-
modores’ leadoff man bat-
ted .338 for the season and
a team-best .308 in SEC
games, and his 22 sto-
len bases were most in the
conference.
RHP Andre Pallante,
UC Irvine
The junior was a unan-
imous All-American who
led the Big West with a 10-1
record in 15 starts, all but
one lasting fewer than six
innings. His 1.60 ERA was
best in the Big West and
sixth in the country, and he
struck out 115 in 101 1-3
innings.
C Shea Langeliers,
Baylor
Another top draft pros-
pect, Langeliers enters his
third year starting as the
best defensive catcher in the
nation, having thrown out
23 of 33 base stealers and
posting a .994 fielding per-
centage. His walk-off RBI
single gave Baylor its first
Big 12 Tournament cham-
pionship, and he set career
highs with 18 doubles, 11
home runs and 44 RBIs.
RHP
Max
Meyer,
Minnesota
Meyer and staff ace Pat-
rick Fredrickson will be
in the spotlight again for a
Gophers team that lost five
everyday players. Fredrick-
son was 9-0 and named
Big Ten pitcher of the year.
However, there’s more onus
on Meyer to repeat what he
did last year, when he set a
school record with 16 saves.
LHP Zack Thompson,
Kentucky
Thompson had a fantas-
tic freshman season, but an
arm injury caused him to
miss his first seven starts
in SEC play last year. He’s
fully recovered, having
raised eyebrows last sum-
mer when he pitched a com-
bined 8 2-3 shutout innings
for the USA Collegiate
National Team.
Bane: Following a family tradition
Continued from Page B1
when she was a junior.
And it doesn’t end
there — cousin Ammarae
Broncheau played basket-
ball for the American Inter-
national Sports Teams, Inc.
in Austria in 2014. She’s cur-
rently a guard for the wom-
en’s team at Blue Mountain
Community College.
“As a mom, you’re just
super proud to see your son
continuing that legacy,”
Rosenberg said. “Our fam-
ily motto is, ‘We’re as strong
as our roots.’ It’s great to
celebrate that we all have
this in common.”
Rosenberg remembers
her experience with the
Worlds Sports Exchange as
an eye-opening one, and is
excited for her son to see the
world like she did.
And when Bane received
his invitation last fall, he
said it was a no-brainer. He
knew he had to follow in his
family’s footsteps.
“The main thing my fam-
ily told me was, ‘You need
to go. There’s nothing like
it,’” he said.
“I’m not just represent-
ing Oregon; I’m represent-
ing Pendleton.”
Bane’s flight departs on
Sunday, July 7, and he’ll
return on Wednesday, July
17. But before he can board,
he’ll need to raise some
funds — $4,600 to be exact.
The first $2,000 is due on
March 1.
The family has set up
a donation account at the
Columbia State Bank under
“Down Under Donations,”
and another at downunder-
s p o r t s .c o m / Z U K- DP O.
Their deadline is Wednes-
day, May 1.
“Between his athletic
schedules, word of mouth is
the only thing we have the
time for,” Rosenberg said.
“I’m excited for (Zaanan) to
represent our city.”
EOU Trapshooting Club
to host Shamrock Shoot
The Shamrock Shoot is loading up for
another round. The Eastern Oregon Uni-
versity Trapshooting Club-hosted event
will host its second annual contest on Fri-
day, March 15 and Saturday, March 16 at
the La Grande Gun Club.
The Trapshooting Club is inviting all
middle and high school students to partici-
pate in the event. They promise awards for
the competition’s top performers in a num-
ber of categories.
“It’s a great opportunity to talk with
prospective students and show them what
EOU has to offer,” said Club Advisor John
Shorts in a statement.
Shorts anticipates over 100 competitors
from at least three different states to come
and take part in the event.
Practice opens on Friday, March 15 at
3 p.m., with a Buddy Shoot event to fol-
low at 6 p.m. Campus tours for students
and families will be held on that day at
1:30 p.m., 3 p.m. and Saturday at 11 a.m.
Registration is $40 per participant
before March 8. Any registrations after
that date will cost $45. Shooters may also
register on the day of the event until 9 a.m.
at the check-in table. Day-of registers will
be assigned to the final group.
Checks are payable to the EOU Trap-
shooting Club. Registration and details are
available at eou.edu/shamrock-shoot.
Youth Basketball Night
coming to the Moda Center
Tickets for the Hermiston Youth Bas-
ketball night are now on sale.
The event, at the Moda Center in Port-
land, will take place during the Trail Blaz-
ers game on Saturday, March 9 at 7 p.m.
Tickets begin at $25, and those who pur-
chase before Friday, Feb. 15 are entered to
win an autographed basketball from all of
the Trail Blazers. Tickets can be purchased
online at https://fevo.me/hpr.
All children aged 5-14 are eligible for
the Blazers’ Court of Dreams Clinic — an
hour long-program at 2:30 p.m. on Satur-
day, March 9 taught by a Blazers instruc-
tor. The program teaches basketball funda-
mentals and offers scrimmage time on the
court. Photo opportunities are available
during the lesson.
Registration can found on the Hermis-
ton Parks and Recreation website.
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