Seattle Mariners put Felix Hernandez on regular Spring training schedule

Felix Hernandez is on a routine Spring training schedule, which is an excellent sign for the Seattle Mariners moving forward.

Unlike previous years, Seattle Mariners starting pitcher Felix Hernandez will throw on a similar schedule as the other pitchers in camp.

For a glorious stretch of ten years, Felix Hernandez was a modern workhorse. Beginning with his first full season in 2006 and continuing through the 2015 season, Felix led all pitchers in baseball in innings pitched and Wins Above Replacement (WAR, per Fangraphs). No pitcher had more strikeouts than Felix during this stretch, and only two pitchers had more wins, Justin Verlander and CC Sabathia,

That was Felix Hernandez in his 20s. The 30-plus version of Felix has struggled to stay healthy and pitch effectively. After averaging 32 starts and 218 innings per year over the previous 10 years, Hernandez has averaged 20 starts and 120 innings over the last two years. As he heads into his age-32 season, the Mariners are looking for ways to keep him on the field.

With that in mind, the team asked Hernandez to alter his spring training routine from previous years. Rather than start throwing bullpens a week or so after the rest of the staff, Felix is right there with everyone else this season. This comes after he already altered his offseason training to work more on flexibility than adding muscle.

In the offseason before last season, Hernandez bulked up with heavy lifting while getting prepared to pitch in the World Baseball Classic. He started two games and pitched well (1.17 ERA, 0.91 WHIP in 7 2/3 innings) for as disappointing Venezuelan team that only won two of their five games in the tournament. Once the MLB season started, Hernandez spent time on the DL twice for extended stretches due to shoulder problems.

Despite the spring training changes, Hernandez doesn’t believe he needs to make any adjustments to his repertoire. He said, “I probably look at more videos now, but I’m not different at all. I don’t need to make any adjustments. I’ll just go with my strengths.” In his prime, Hernandez best pitch was his hard 89 mph changeup, which played well off his 94 mph fastball. Last year, his fastball barely topped 90, and his changeup came in there at 86.

The Mariners are counting on Hernandez to be healthy and hoping for at least 25 good starts from him. They know he’s not the workhorse he once was. His pitch count will be watched closely, with 90-100 pitches being more likely than anything beyond that. If he can pitch effectively for five or six innings, manager Scott Servais will turn it over to the bullpen.

While Hernandez tries to stay healthy, teammate Ryon Healy will be sidelined four to six weeks with a hand injury. The first baseman had surgery to remove a bone spur and could miss the start of the season. He was acquired in an offseason trade with the Oakland A’s and is expected to provide power from the right-hand side.

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With Healy injured, the only remaining first basemen in camp are Daniel Vogelbach and Rule 5 draftee Mike Ford. Vogelbach has hit .291/.403/.480 in 258 games at AAA but hasn’t had the same success in the big leagues, albeit in small sample sizes in just two seasons (.175/.250/.200 in 44 plate appearances). Ford has also had success in AAA, with a .274/.412/.452 batting line in 143 games at that level, but has yet to play in the majors.

Both Vogelbach and Ford bat left-handed, so the Mariners could be looking for a right-handed bat if Healy misses more than six weeks. The options on the free agent market include Mark Reynolds, Danny Valencia, and Tyler Moore. Moore hasn’t hit at all in 381 major league games, and Valencia was granted free agency after playing with the Mariners last season.

Reynolds is coming off a 30-homer season but is hearing crickets as a free agent. That’s likely because he played half his home games at hitter-friendly Coors Field, where he launched 21 of his 30 homers and hit .294/.393/.584. On the road, he hit .242/.311/.392. He hasn’t made more than two million in a season since 2013, so he shouldn’t cost much, but he’s projected to be a below average hitter who is terrible on defense and a below-average base runner.

Next: Mariners counting too much on a Felix Hernandez bounce back?

It will be interesting to see if the Mariners pick up a first baseman. Their best first base prospect is Evan White, and he’s not close to big league ready yet. In the meantime, the early focus is on Felix Hernandez. He’s in camp. He’s on schedule. He’s ready for 2018.