Despite the departure of pitching ace Cliff Lee, tonight Mariners fans might see something special, because two stars are coming out when the Mariners take on the Yankees.
Felix Hernandez is the starter today and he is trying to come off of his great outing against the Yankees last week in New York. King Felix’s start last week was the first-ever shutout by an opposing pitcher at the new Yankee Stadium!
Felix is 4-1 with an ERA of about 2.50 in his last five starts against the Yankees, so expect a good outing from Felix. And also expect a good debut from superstar-to-be, Justin Smoak.
Smoak is a 24-year-old, switch-hitting first baseman who was just traded to the Mariners from the Rangers with some prospects for Cliff Lee and Mark Lowe.
He was the No. 11 pick in the 2008 draft and today he will most probably be the starting first baseman. He will have to face Yankees pitcher Javier Vasquez.
Smoak was the main reason why Cliff Lee was traded to Texas instead of the Yankees, and he should be the first baseman for the Mariners well into the future.
Many people compare him to Mark Teixeira, which shows that even though he has not hit well this year, hitting .209 with eight homers and 34 RBIs, he will be great in the future and he will help the Mariners quite a bit.
So tonight, I would watch the debut of Smoak and get used to seeing him in Seattle, because he will be a star for years to come.
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