Felix Hernandez made his second start since being activated from the DL, and was the hard luck loser in a 2-1 contest with the San Diego Padres. He struck out nine and that must be considered a good thing.
Expect a lot to be made of the eight hits allowed and three walks in those five innings of work. Putting eleven men on base over five innings of work and just letting two runs cross the plate seems to smack more of luck than the skill suggested by the nine ks.
He did get lucky in the 5th. With Mike Cameron on first, Adrian Gonzalez hit a ground rule double that kept Cameron from scoring. Hernandez allowed a walk in the midst of striking out the side. Can we definitively assume anything but Cameron scoring on that hit? Would Hernandez have pitched the same with a man on second and no out down 3-1?