1B. Alvin Davis (Mr. Mariner. The first Mariner I liked as a kid, and the one of the only players on the team I can remember being good at the time.) Replaced and rightfully so byTino, the other great Martinez in Mariner History. Tino played a lot like Donny Baseball and eventually replaced Mattingly, who retired, and then the Yanks win the series.
Backup: John Olerud (Fans like myself were devastated when the team decided to part ways with Ole. Still the best defensive first baseman I've ever watched, and he also had a really sweet swing.)
2B. Bret Boone (Did Popeye forearms use performance-enhancing drugs? Probably. This guy was the king of the break out year followed by the slump year. I liked Boonie for his pop, gold glove defense, but mostly for teaching Ichiro some curse words in his first season with the team. I remember the PA annoucer in Oakland on opening day 1999, called him Burt Boone, and he replied with "You gotta be shitttin' me!" It was a hilarious moment.
Backup: Harold Reynolds (A Corvallis legend. He had a real knack for swiping the bases. I would say he was the best base stealer not named Rickey Henderson or Vince Coleman in the '80s. He also played excellent defense at 2nd. He was another player the team cast away as he got too old. His replacement: A young Brett Boone, who was later dealt to Cincinnatti. It was hard not to put Joey Cora in this group, but he didn't really have the numbers. Boone was overlooked in favor of Cora by the team, regarding the thirty year anniversary.
3B. Jim Presley (The "Hound Dog" had seriously lethal power, but unfortunately it was wasted on terrible Mariner teams in the '80s. He made the All-Star team in 1986, when he averaged career highs in HR (27) and RBIs (107).)
Backup: Mike Blowers (A local product, who played college ball at theo University o fWashington. He was one of many contributors on the '95 Mariner team that stunned the world. He is currently a TV Analyst for the Mariners and created a promotional stunt called the "Rally Fries". Fans with the most clever sign in the audience are rewarded with garlic fries from Kidd Valley Hamburgers. Saddly he's probably more famous now, but some of us remember him only as "Blower Power")
C Dan Wilson (He played for the Mariners from '90 to '05. He was acquired from the Reds and rejoined manager Lou Piniella with the Mariners. He was one of the best defensive catchers of all time. He made the All-Star team in '96, where he had career highs in HR (18) and RBIs (83). He made so-so pitchers like Joel Piniero and John Halama look like above average pitchers at times. My brother saw him at a Seahawks game and wanted to give him a hug, but I talked him out of it.)
Backup: Kenji Johjima (The first Japanese catcher to make it to the Major Leagues. There's no telling how good Kenji Johjima will be. I think he has made prized prospect Jeff Clement expendable at present time, as the club is in playoff contention for the first time, after 3 losing seasons. He has excellent pop for a catcher. I could tell after he hit two HRs against the Angels in his first two games that he was going to be an impact player for the Mariners, and so far he's been great.)
SS, Outfield, DH (Edgar Martinez) and pitchers next time.
I was 5 years old in 1977 and was becoming a baseball fan. I always thought Seattle's hat had the coolest logo and I immediately decided that they would be my favorite A.L. team. I also liked them because they sucked and I've always pulled for the underdog.
I would have had a heckuva time picking the first baseman. Alvin Davis was awesome and so was Olerud. I think Olerud was one of the most underrated and underappreciated players of his time. Looking forward to seeing the follow up post, and thanks for giving credit to Jim Presley--he was stuck on some TERRIBLE teams!
1st base in my opinion would have to go to tino, he was one of the great players in the 95 season and went on to have many more great seasons with NY. His fielding was just as good as ole but he had way more power which is what you want out of a first baseman not the high average hitter ole was. As far as the rest of the picks, Boone was only good for one season... a great season that was but the rest of his time with seattle he was a great fielder but very poor with the bat so I dont know if I could put him as the best ever just because he helped us win 116 games and then choked in the play offs.
Hitman, if you're going to throw out Langston, why don't you have RJ there? What about A-Rod? SS and P is in next column. Hendu? He might be on the Oakland all-time list but he pastured in Seattle to get an announcing job.
DH - No question... he has a street named after him.
I remember as a kid who could only listen to games on the radio, Dave did a better job than anyone of giving you a mental picture of whats going on on the field. On such mental picture that seemed to appear over and over again was "THE SARGE" Bob Kerney barking out orders behind the plate, just before he threw a strike to second baseman Jack Percantie(sorry jack if i butcherd your name). He was one of my favorite 2nd basemen. He may not have been able to hit for nutin, but boy he could throw some leather. GOTTA LOVE THESE GUYS
PF is from the Northwest. I'm a huge fan of the Seahawks, Mariners, and Trail Blazers! If you don't root for your teams, even when they're losing or re-building, you are not a true fan.
Go Beavs! Back to Back NCAA Baseball Champions! Obama in '08!
