Ray of Hope

Though things have been characteristically dire for your Seattle Mariners this season, there is reason to hope for 2006. Now that the AP-wire sports stories are referring to Mariners' phenom Felix Hernandez as "King Felix," I can finally start telling people that this kid is for real. Ending his first month in the major leagues, he's 3-2, with a 1.59 ERA and 50 strike outs. If he played for any team but the Mariners (or perhaps Royals), he'd be 7-0. All this, and he was born in 1986(!). He is, dare I even think it, the second coming of Doc Gooden, but without (knock on wood) those nagging substance abuse problems.