The time is now...

to trade Felix Hernandez.

Before I explain, first let me say a couple things about myself.  I am a die-hard Mariners fan, have been since I can remember.  I have been to hundreds of games over the years, all the losses and a few of the wins.  I watch them on TV with an almost religious zealous, too my girlfriend's chagrin.  Most of my friends and family jumped ship years ago, but not me.  I still hold out hope that one day my Mariners will win it all, and I can celebrate with all the bandwagon fans when it happens.  I am also a huge Felix Hernandez fan.  This league hasn't seen many young pitchers as dominant as him over the last few decades.  Felix, or King Felix as he has been anointed, is the epitome of what an ace pitcher is and should be.  In almost every game he will undoubtedly give you 8-9 innings of pure pitching at its finest.  His passion for the game exudes in his confidence on the mound.  So there you have it, I love the Mariners and I love King Felix.

Here is where I make my decision about which I love more.  The team, or the player?  Back when I was a kid, I would have said the player.  I was a huge Ryne Sandberg fan and wouldn't have cared what team he played on.  But as I have grown older, I have come to realize that it is so much more about the team than the individual.  One player does not define a team, or shouldn't at least, and if he does then I believe it is time to cut bait and move on for the betterment of the team.  That's not to say that doing such a thing comes without heartache and pain.  Deciding to part ways with a beloved hero brings about a myriad of issues and questions that the team must first answer before making it's final decision to do so.  How will the fans react?  How will the organization move forward?  Making that decision to trade your star player does not come without its downsides, but as an organization you must weight the pros and cons and make the decision that makes the most sense for the team.  For me, that decision would be to trade Henandez now while you can get the most bang for your buck, and before he pulls a Randy Johnson on you.  Please tell me you remember that fiasco?


Without boring you with all the statistics, we all know Felix has been dominant for most of his career.  Innings, strikeouts, making fools of opposing hitters  But if this year is any indication, he is starting to show some signs of decline, if only minimal.  His drop in velocity really isn't all that shocking considering his workload over the years.  Not many pitchers his age have piled up as many innings he has.  And before those of you who want to talk about pitchers from the 50's and 60's, save your breath because its comparing apples to oranges.  Today's pitchers are not trained or conditioned to throw complete games every time out.  Sad to say, but it's the truth.  So moving on, we nee to look at some other signs that the team may be better off without him.  He's not getting hitters out with ease as he has in the past.  Far to often he has looked more human than not.  Teams aren't fearing him the way they used to.  Every fifth game doesn't seem quite like the near automatic victory it should be.  That brings me to my Randy Johnson inference above.  If we don't strike now while the iron is still hot,  we could see things get worse in a hurry.  With the Mariners in ability to score runs and win on a consistent basis, it wears on a pitcher.  Add to that the desire to win championships and you can quickly add up the reasons why Felix just might not care anymore.  Now before I get flamed, I am not suggesting that Felix is bombing on purpose right now, but come next year you have to start wondering as such if his decline continues on the path it is on today.

Randy Johnson had enough losing
before he took matters into his own hands.
Will Felix do the same if the M's don't start winning?

Felix has an ingrained desire to win and my bet is he wants to win for a championship caliber team. The Mariners are far from that team and won't be for at least the next several years.  His still relatively young age, and his past performance, should be enough to get any team in contention hot and bothered by his availability.  Take the Yankees for example, they continue to ask year after year if Felix can be traded.  They are like vultures circling over a carcass in the desert.  Take into account his remaining contract and you've more than doubled his value.  I say take advantage of the situation now while the cards are stacked in your favor.  The return the Mariners could get by trading a proven commodity like Hernandez should be astronomical.  I'm talking 2-3 blue chip prospects, plus additional quality players in return.  You don't believe me or think I'm crazy?  Find me a GM from a contending team that wouldn't make that move.  Championships pay bigger dividends than prospects, just ask the Mariners.  They have no titles and so far their prospects aren't developing into a championship caliber squad.  Trading Felix now also diminishes the possibility of reliving the same Randy Johnson saga that played out several years ago.

So for the love of my team, I am willing to part ways with one of the most dominant pitchers in this league.  I will be sad, and may even cry a little, but mostly because I know what's best in the long run.  I'm with Jack Z in his youth movement, and I ask him to go all in with this move.  We'll be a lot closer to contending in 2014-15 than if he sits on this goldmine of an opportunity and waits any longer.


Thanks Felix!  It's been a fun ride.  Come back and say hi from time to time.  There will be no hard feelings this time around.  You did your part, and we gave you a crown.  Enjoy the playoffs and do us proud, win it all and shout it loud.  And when you get that coveted ring, remember who anointed you King.

***FRIDAY MORNING EDIT***
TRADE HIM NOW!!!  After last night's 1-0, 13K, CG, shutout, there is no better time to trade Felix than today.  That performance will be stuck in the heads of every GM long enough for Jack Z to take what he wants and rob them blind.  It pains me to write this kind of stuff after such a stellar performance, but when you sit back and realize we only scored 1 run ourselves, it becomes crystal clear that the M's need so much more than what Felix offers them on his own.  This team is horrible offensively and won't win many 1-0 games, even with Felix on the mound.  Remove the blinders, step out of the fog, trading King Felix can and should be the best thing to happen to the Mariners since, well, since they signed him.