Mariners legend Edgar Martinez voted into Baseball Hall of Fame



Edgar Martinez is greeted by fans as he takes a lap around the field during a post game ceremony honoring his career with the Mariners on October 2, 2004 at Safeco Field. (Photo by Otto Greule Jr/Getty Images)



Edgar Martinez has a Seattle street, a ballpark cantina and a Major League Baseball award named after him.

Now there will be a plaque with his likeness in Cooperstown.

The former Seattle Mariners third baseman and designated hitter was among those named Tuesday to the National Baseball Hall of Fame along with pitchers Mariano Rivera, Roy Halladay and Mike Mussina.

It was the 10th and final time Martinez would appear on the ballot and he received 85.4 percent of the vote, well ahead of the 75 percent threshold.



Martinez played all 18 seasons of his career in Seattle. He holds Mariners records in games played, plate appearances, runs scored, doubles, RBIs, bases on balls, on-base percentage and total bases.

He won two batting titles and was an all-star seven times.

Martinez will be the second player enshrined in the Hall of Fame as a Mariner. Ken Griffey Jr. was the first when he was inducted in 2016. Former teammate Randy Johnson was inducted as a Diamondback in 2015.

Both have been strong supporters of Martinez through the years.

Martinez will be the second player inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame as a Mariner. (Photo credit should read DAVE KAUP/AFP/Getty Images)



“Edgar Martinez is, hands down, the best hitter that I’ve ever seen,” Johnson said of his former teammate. “He is the best pure hitter that I got to see on a nightly basis.”

Griffey offered similar praise.

“Edgar deserves to be in (the Hall of Fame),” he said. “He was one of the most feared hitters in the game for 10-plus years.”

The three iconic Mariners will soon be together at last in Cooperstown.

With them, longtime team announcer Dave Niehaus was inducted in 2008. His catchphrases of "My, oh my," "Swung on and belted," and "Fly away!" punctuating so many of their iconic highlights.

Martinez is widely considered one of the best hitters of his generation and one of the greatest right-handed hitters of all time.

He is one of only four right-handers to record at least 2,000 hits, 500 doubles, 300 home runs, 1,200 RBIs and 1,200 walks; and he is the only right-handed batter in the past 83 seasons to put up a .310/.410/.510 or better slash line with more walks than strikeouts in his career.

Martinez's double in the 11th inning during Game five of the 1995 American League Divisional Series pushed the Mariners past the New York Yankees at the Kingdome. (Photo by Stephen Dunn/Getty Images)



“The toughest guy I faced, I think, with all due respect to all the players in the league, was Edgar Martinez,” Hall of Fame pitcher Pedro Martinez said.

While there was never a doubt about Martinez’s bat, it was the lack of glove that likely kept him off some voters’ ballots the first nine seasons of eligibility.

After breaking into the league as a third baseman, Martinez transitioned quickly to designated hitter after injuries shortened his 1993 and '94 seasons. Of the 2,055 games he appeared in, 1,403 of them were at DH.

It was a position he excelled at. While some players have complained that not playing in the field can take them out of rhythm, Martinez made the transition smoothly.

He won his second batting title in 1995 appearing for the first time in more games as a designated hitter than third baseman. He was named the best DH in baseball that year and five times over seven seasons. The award would later be renamed in his honor.

Martinez’s Hall of Fame case also suffered slightly because it took him awhile to break into the majors, which limited his career numbers. While he made his Major League debut in 1987 at the age of 24, it wasn’t until 1990 that the Mariners made him the everyday third baseman after trading Jim Pressley to the Braves.

Martinez took over full-time at third base for the Mariners in 1990 and hit .302. (Photo by Otto Greule Jr/Getty Images)



Edgar hit .302 with 11 homers and 27 doubles in his first full season. Two years later, he was an all-star and the American League batting champion.

Soon after that, the personal success was met with team achievements as well, as he led the Mariners to the playoffs for the first time in 1995.

In the American League Division Series against the Yankees, no one encapsulated the “Refuse To Lose” mantra of the team more than Martinez. His grand slam in Game 4 pushed the series to the brink, and brought with it a legendary call from Niehaus about grandma’s mustard and rye bread. His double in extra innings in Game 5 won the series.

Martinez and the Mariners would make the playoffs again in 1997, 2000 and 2001. Those remain the only four postseason appearance in franchise history.

He was the cleanup hitter on teams that featured Griffey, Alex Rodriguez and Jay Buhner. His clutch performances late in games provided some of the greatest Mariners moments of all time.

On Tuesday, he came through yet again. In his final at-bat on the ballot box, he earned enough votes to join the greatest of the greats in Cooperstown.

My, oh my, indeed.