Felix Hernandez, having signed a five-year contract with the Mariners worth $78 million, appeared before reporters late this afternoon at Safeco Field weariing a a crisp dark suit and a diamond in each ear.
When his pitching coach, Rick Adair, heard about that, he laughed.
“I’m glad he finally got some money so he can buy some decent suits,” Adair said a few minutes ago by phone from his home in South Carolina.
Like everyone else in the organization, Adair is thrilled to have Hernandez on the mound every five days for the next five years. Adair won’t go so far as to say this removes a potentially huge distraction this year because he can’t read Hernandez’s mind.
Adair has seen the uncertain future of some players be both distracting and motivating, and he has seen those who’ve signed big-money multi-year deals follow up with good seasons and bad.
“It can have a positive and a negative effect,” Adair said. “Even if you do sign, it can be positive and negative. What’s important is how you handle it and the kind of character you have.”
To that, Adair has no worries about Hernandez, who doubts the big-money security over the next five years might cause Felix to be complacent.
“I believe him,” said Adair, who became more impressed with Hernandez as a pitcher and a person as last season went along. “I remember times last year when he was going real well after mid-May, and you just didn’t know, with the innings he was piling up, how it was going to affect him. There was a period of time last year when we thought he might need to give him a break. But he fought through it and did some things in the last month and a half that you don’t often see from young pitchers.”
Examples?
“Felix extended himself 40 innings last year over what he ptiched the year before,” Adair said. “You really don’t know what kind of effect that’s going to have on a guy, especially a guy at 23. You’re cautious with every outing. But Felix responded. He stayed with his routine between starts and he didn’t back off any side work. And there were times in the sixth and seventh innings when he’d be in a situation with his back against the wall and he’d make a great pitch. It was impressive.
“For a guy that young to have done what he’s done, I don’t know if anybody’s been in that situation. I was looking at some names of guys he’s been compared to at the same age. Dwight Gooden is one that’s mentioned a lot. To be around a talent like that, it’s an honor, really.”
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