Off-Topic » The good King or the bad King?

That is the question for the Seattle Mariners and those in attendance Thursday night at Safeco Field for the opener of a four-game series with the Boston Red Sox.

Will they get to see the Felix Hernandez who went a season-high eight innings in his last home start against Tampa Bay Jeffery Simmons Jersey , giving up just one run on five hits with one walk and seven strikeouts?

Or will it be the King Felix who lasted just three innings on the road Saturday against those same Rays, getting tagged for six runs (five earned) on seven hits to a team that had lost eight straight games?

“He threw the ball very well and got very good results the last time out (at home),” Mariners manager Scott Servais said after Saturday’s 7-3 loss. “But the key in this league is being consistent and going out there every start and giving your team a chance to win. And we were behind the eight ball after the third inning. I just want to see consistency and giving us a chance to win. And he does, too.

“Felix’s stuff wasn’t as good (Sunday). It was evident right from the get-go. The life on the fastball really wasn’t there. It’s not all about velocity. It’s about locating it. And that wasn’t really on either.”

Hardly a ringing endorsement for a six-time All-Star and the American League’s 2010 Cy Young Award winner.

King Felix is 6-5 this season with a career-worst 5.70 ERA. He has given up four or more runs in five of his past seven starts.

“I was making some good pitches and they had some hits that found some holes and there’s nothing I could do about that,” Hernandez said in his own defense Saturday. “I think I had pretty good stuff, they just put a lot of balls in play, just a little bit of tough luck. I was a little bit up, but I think I was making good pitches.”

Maybe catcher Mike Zunino put it best, telling The Seattle Times: “There’s been games where his velocity may not have been that high Nate Davis Jersey , but if he locates he can get away with stuff.”

Opposing pitchers haven’t gotten away with much against the Red Sox, who lead the American League East.

Outfielder Mookie Betts, who returned Monday from a stint on the 10-day disabled list with a left abdominal strain, leads the league with a .352 batting average and an on-base plus slugging percentage of 1.171. Teammate J.D. Martinez is second to the Los Angeles Angels‘ Mike Trout with 22 homers and is third in the league, behind Betts and Trout, with a 1.033 OPS.

Betts hit his first home run since coming off the disabled list Wednesday in a 5-1 victory that gave the Red Sox a sweep of Baltimore.

“I’ve done everything that I pretty much do, and I passed the test,” said Betts, who didn’t have the benefit of a minor league rehabilitation assignment. “Just trying to ride this wave.”

Hernandez is 8-4 with a 4.01 ERA in 19 career starts against Boston.

The Red Sox will counter with left-hander David Price (7-4 Tytus Howard Jersey , 4.00 ERA), who is 5-0 in his past six starts overall.

Price is 3-1 with a 2.62 ERA in seven career starts against Seattle.

Quarterback Ryan Leaf once played for the Dallas Cowboys. Seriously. The same second-overall National Football League Draft pick who was a disaster while with the San Diego Chargers played, and even started, for one of the most storied franchises in the history of North American professional sports. The same franchise that had Roger Staubach and Troy Aikman under center once decided to give Leaf a shot. Here is a spoiler alert in case you couldn't guess the outcome: That experiment did not end well for the Cowboys or for the QB, and Leaf never played for any other NFL club.Remarkably, Leaf may actually not be the worst quarterback to have ever played for the Cowboys. Babe Laufenberg, nice guy that he may have been during his pro football career, was one lousy professional QB. The same can be said about Drew Henson and Quincy Carter, neither of whom Gary Jennings Jr. Jersey , if we are being honest about it, should have been given multiple opportunities to start at QB for NFL teams. None of the previously mentioned players cause diehard fans of the Cowboys to cringe as much as they do when they hear the name of Shante Carver, who may very well be the worst draft pick in the history of the proud Cowboys.The Cowboys once planned on selecting a wide receiver named Jerry Rice. When that was no longer an option, Dallas instead settled on defensive lineman Kevin Brooks. That some younger fans of the Cowboys are saying “who?” upon seeing Brooks' name tells you just about all you need to know about that draft pick. Because we don't believe in being biased toward those who play more than a handful of downs per game, we also decided to include a kicker. In fall fairness, that kicker did, at the time that he joined the Cowboys, have a recognizable name. Too bad his foot had already retired by then.