The Mariners' Felix Hernandez pitched a perfect game Wednesday as Seattle beat the Tampa Bay Rays 1-0 at Safeco Field.
According to ESPN, the Mariners are the first team in MLB history to throw a perfect game and have a perfect game thrown against them in the same season.
King Felix entered the game with a 6-0 record with a 1.73 ERA in his past 11 starts and did not record a decision in Friday's 6-5 setback at Anaheim, where he gave up five runs -- four earned -- in seven innings. That outing came one start after his two-hit shutout of the Yankees on Aug. 4.
Hernandez, a right-hander, is 6-3 in 13 starts at Safeco Field this season and did not factor in the outcome of a 3-2 loss at Tampa Bay on April 30. He struck out nine Rays and permitted one run in eight frames.
The Mariners’ ace and former AL Cy Young Award winner has long talked of his desire to achieve pitching perfection. He finally accomplished it against the Rays, striking out the side twice and finishing with 12 strikeouts.
It was the third perfect game in baseball this season, joining gems by Chicago’s Philip Humber against the Mariners in April and San Francisco’s Matt Cain against Houston in June.
