M's, A's Pitchers Meet at High Noon on Main Street

SEATTLE--Sport, at its finest, allows us to sample the greater emotions not usually found in our quotidian lives, to order off the children's menu the feelings of pride, nobility, heartache, and despair.  Nowhere, I believe, are these emotions more finely threaded than in a true Pitchers' Duel, decided by one run: our man against all of theirs, their man against all of ours.  Baseball is a team sport and yet a battle of individuals, and in such a Duel as transposed last night in the rain-washed yard of SafeCo field, the two pitchers stood in and delivered.

Felix Hernandez was recently presented with Cy Young's old trophy by the American League, more recently presented with a Loss by the Kansas City Royals with a matching set of 6 hits and 2 ERs over 5 innings.  Felix fits his name on the mound, he is expansive in body and spirit.  He mutters in frustration when a close ball is called against him, he shares a laugh with the catcher in conference, he covers first, he pumps his fist to see his teammates make a saving play in the infield.  He is broad-shouldered, with a bad haircut and scruff under his chin.  I can picture him--if he were not throwing elusive, freight-train-like pitches past spectating Oakland batters--working in an auto shop or putting together airplanes with the same mix of seriousness, exuberance, and commitment to excellence.  Last night, every mechanism of his pitching rhythm was in gear; he struck out eight.  He inspired his teammates to sharp defense behind him, highlighted by a double play on a sharp line to Figgins outing Sweeny, then throwing to first to stomp out Willingham and his lead-off single.  When Felix walked off the field for the last time, the Seattle crowd stood on its feet, able to recognize Good Baseball when they see it, and the King humbly ducked and touched his cap.

Brandon McCarthy, after missing all of last season with an injury, appears more tightly controlled than Felix.  His jaw is set, his motion to the plate is lean, economical, and spare.  His expression is intense and unchanging.  He methodically struck out six last night, and like Felix, his infield sprang into defense behind him, turning a classic 6-4-3 double play, catching Peguero trying to steal, catching pop fouls to convert them into outs.  McCarthy was disciplined, only allowing a single walk, and facing just two batters over the minimum.  If he had been in the Oakland Stadium, he too would have likely received a standing O as he trod off the field.

In the end, it was a single swing of the bat, a single pitch from McCarthy in the Fourth, left up too high for First Baseman Kennedy; and Kennedy sent it up higher, up up and over the right field wall, and that pitch made all the difference in the game.  

Both men's lines are worth listing here:

FHernandez, 7.2IP, 4H, 0R, 0ER, 8K, 3BB, W

BMcCarthy, 8IP, 3H, 1R, 1ER, 6K, 1BB, L