"Felix Hernandez normally heads straight to the clubhouse once he is removed from a game.

He had 17 reasons why he chose to remain in the visiting dugout until the final out of the Mariners' 9-2 victory over the Yankees at the Stadium.

"That was the first time I did that, because I wanted this game so bad," King Felix said after finally halting Seattle's franchise record 17-game losing streak. "It means a lot, man. Seventeen losses... But I knew I just had to pitch my game and that's what I did."

Hernandez's game makes him precisely the type of frontline starter the Yankees or any contending team would love to acquire before Sunday's non-waiver trading deadline. But the Mariners insist their 25-year-old ace is headed nowhere, and his latest performance was yet another reason why.

The Yankees got one run on five hits over seven innings off Hernandez as the 2010 AL Cy Young winner improved to 5-0 with a 1.29 ERA in his last six starts against them, including two shutouts in the Bronx."