The Seattle Mariners are playing well after a dreadful start, while the New York Yankees are playing better than everyone gave them credit for at the start of the year, which makes Tuesday's matchup of CC Sabathia and Felix Hernandez ever more interesting.
Hernandez has historically been good at Yankee Stadium and he has been lights out lately, going 4-0 over his last five starts with a sub-1.00 ERA in that time. He won on Tuesday 2-1 against the Pirates and after using off days, the Mariners lined up Hernandez to pitch against Sabathia at Yankee Stadium on Tuesday. Hernandez has been better on the road this season and in his last game at the stadium he threw a two hitter and is 4-1 with a 1.13 ERA in his last five road starts at the Yankees.
Sabathia has won eight matchups against Seattle and is 4-0 with a 1.50 ERA in his last four games against the team in New York and after splitting a double header with the Indians on Monday, the Yankees will be looking for more.
"That's a big matchup right there," Hernandez told the team's website. "I just have to go out there and match him and do whatever we have to do to win the game."
Hernandez got some extra rest due to the off days and the Yankees won his last start against the Rockies after a rain delay with a 3-1 win. The team has won five of six of seven after dropping the first game on Monday, taking the second game 7-0 after some nice hitting from Vernon Wells and Lyle Overbay, two players that have been solid for the Yankees all season.
The Mariners are 7-11 on the road this season and rank 27th in scoring and 26th in batting average. The team is ranked 22nd in on base percentage and 24th in slugging, while the Yankees are 16th and 9th in those categories. The Yankees are 24-14 on the year and are 14th in runs and 13th in batting.
