The Seattle Mariners have a new pitching rotation in place. Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times reports.
The team had already announced that Felix Hernandez and Jason Vargas will be the first two starters and will start the games against the A's in Japan March 28-29.
Today, manager Eric Wedge said the other three starters to begin the season will be Hector Noesi, Blake Beavan and Kevin Millwood.
Here's a little bit on each pitcher.
Felix Hernandez is the lead pitcher once again. His 2011 season fell off from his excellent 2010 campaign, as his ERA rose to 3.47 from 2.27 and the WHIP went from 1.057 to 1.220, while strikeouts slightly declined from 232 to 222. Still enough for Hernandez to keep his lead spot though.
Jason Vargas comes next, and also saw his ERA rise from 3.78 to 4.25. His WHIP and hit/walk count also increased slightly, although his strikeout count did go up from 116 to 131.
Hector Noesi has only one season in the majors; in his two starting appearances with the Yankees he managed a 4.47 ERA. In his remaining relief appearances he struck out 45 in 56 innings pitched.
Blake Beavan has also only pitched one season in the majors, going 5-6 with a 4.27 ERA.
Kevin Millwood has pitched in the majors since 1997, and is coming off a year in Colorado where he only pitched nine games with a 3.98 ERA.
To discuss the pitching rotation with Mariners fans, head on over to Lookout Landing.