(SportsNetwork.com) - While Felix Hernandez was dominating last time out, it did not result in a win.
Still, the former AL Cy Young Award winner is on a roll and he hopes that translates into some rare success against Texas as the Seattle Mariners kick off a three-game set with the rival Rangers on Friday night.
Hernandez was aiming for a sixth straight winning start on Sunday versus Tampa Bay, but was saddled with a no-decision despite a terrific performance. He hurled seven scoreless frames of four-hit ball, walking one while striking out a career-high 15 batters.
However, all of the offense came in the ninth inning as the Mariners eventually secured a 5-0 victory.
The right-handed Hernandez did pass Mark Langston for second place in Mariners history with his 29th career game of 10 or more strikeouts, and sits 8-1 on the season with a 2.39 earned run average.
"He was sharp from his bullpen on," Mariners catcher Mike Zunino said of his battery mate. "We did a great job of mixing up pitches."
Hernandez is just 12-20 with a 4.11 ERA in his career versus the Rangers, however, with the 28-year-old getting a pair of no-decisions against them this season. He has allowed four runs over 13 innings in that time with 13 strikeouts.
The Mariners will try to rebound tonight behind Hernandez after getting swept in a three-game set with the New York Yankees. Seattle had won eight of nine heading into the series.
Logan Morrison had a homer and two RBI in Thursday's 6-3 loss, while starter Roenis Elias yielded six runs over 3 1/3 innings.
"I thought he had some good stuff," Zunino said of Elias. "Obviously we had a big crowd today, and maybe he was a little excited and ready to go and let that get the best of him a little bit. But I thought his stuff was good, he just left it up a hair."
The Rangers, meanwhile, begin a nine-game road trip tonight after snapping a four-game slide with Wednesday's 6-0 win over the Miami Marlins. Yu Darvish threw his first major league complete game in the win, a six-hit shutout that also saw him strike out 10 to three walks.
"He certainly gave us what we needed," Rangers manager Ron Washington said of his starter.
Shin-Soo Choo went 2-for-4 with a run scored and four RBI, while Elvis Andrus recorded three of Texas' 11 hits. Adrian Beltre went 2-for-4 and recorded his eighth multi-hit games during Texas' nine-game homestand
Taking the mound for this opener for the Rangers will be right-hander Nick Tepesch, who has lost back-to-back starts since opening his campaign 2-0 through three starts.
Tepesch lasted only two innings versus Washington on May 31, then yielded four runs on eight hits and four walks over 5 1/3 frames of an 8-3 setback to Cleveland on Saturday. That outing dropped the 25-year-old to 2-2 on the year with a 4.91 ERA.
Tepesch is 1-1 with a 4.19 ERA in four lifetime meetings with the Mariners, beating them on May 21 after giving up three runs over 6 1/3 innings.
The Ranges have won five of nine against the Mariners this season, losing two of three in Seattle in late April.
Texas won seven of 10 in Seattle a season ago.
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