Felix Hernandez raised his right index finger and pointed toward the sky as he approached the dugout.
Making his second rehab start in Tacoma on Sunday, Hernandez was praised and encouraged by Rainiers fans. Though many had seen him pitch Tuesday, the two starts couldn’t have been more different.
Hernandez worked five strong innings — perfect through the first four and two-thirds, in fact — before hitting his pitch limit in the Rainiers’ 5-3 victory against the Las Vegas 51s.
On Tuesday The King didn’t look like a former Cy Young winner or a No. 1 starter.