King Félix throws 1st pitch in front of raucous Seattle crowd

SEATTLE -- The King has returned.

In a moment that was equally epic as it was surprising, Félix Hernández emerged beyond the center-field wall at T-Mobile Park ahead of Game 3 of the American League Division Series on Saturday and soaked it all in. This moment -- the first playoff game here in 21 years -- was one he so desperately craved over his 15-year career, which he spent exclusively in Seattle.

Hernández then strolled to the mound on which he had blossomed into one of his generation’s greatest pitchers and he threw out the ceremonial first pitch in front of a sellout crowd that roared in what was perhaps the loudest ovation of any introduction -- including Seattle’s starting lineup.

“My house!” Hernández shouted as he paced across the field with his longtime walk-up song, “The Man” by Aloe Blacc, playing on the loudspeakers. Hernández then lobbed an easy toss to former Mariners teammate Franklin Gutierrez.

Hernández, 36, hasn’t pitched in a big league game since his final start in Seattle on Sept. 26, 2019, when he walked off the field in one of the most emotional moments in franchise history. In front of a packed King’s Court -- the congregation of fans that were clad in yellow for each of his starts -- Hernández had put a bow on the career that began with him signing as an international free agent out of Venezuela with the Mariners on July 4, 2002.

Hernández has always been one of the most beloved figures in franchise history, in huge part due to his loyalty. He so desperately wanted to pitch in the postseason, but his career arc came during the Mariners’ 20-year drought. His peak in 2010, when he was the AL Cy Young Award winner for the 101-loss Mariners, underscored the disparity between his individual success and the team’s prolonged struggles. Hernández was also the runner-up for the AL Cy Young in 2009 and 2014.

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Hernández was competing for a rotation spot with the Braves in 2020 but opted out of that COVID-shortened season. He then signed a Minors deal with Baltimore in Spring Training in 2021 but he didn’t make the team.

In many ways, Seattle will always be home for The King.

Hernández wasn’t the only Pacific Northwest icon that was in the house, either. Pearl Jam’s Mike McCready, an area native and longtime Mariners fan, played the national anthem on his electric guitar -- which he’s done multiple times on Opening Day. Saturday’s performance, coupled with Hernández’s intro, made for one of the more memorable moments in the ballpark’s history.