Four recall the moments that made them Mariners legends

SEATTLE — What better hype on the eve of Seattle’s first All-Star Game since 2001 than to bring in a panel of the best in Mariners history?

Dan Wilson, Alvin Davis, Félix Hernández and Hall of Famer Edgar Martinez shared stories with a packed Clubhouse at PLAY BALL Park at Lumen Field on Monday, just hours before the T-Mobile Home Run Derby kicked off next door at T-Mobile Park, reminding fans of the Mariners’ rich history.

The crowd wooed its baseball heroes right back, serenading Hernández with “K! K! K! K!” when he was introduced, and chanting “Eddd-gar! Eddd-gar!” when Martinez took the mic.

As hard as it might be to imagine the quartet in anything but Mariners colors, moderator Rick Rizzs reminded the attendees of the “Unfiltered”: Mariners Legends DEI panel that but for a few simple twists of fate, Seattle might not have had their careers to celebrate.

Davis, for example, was promoted to the Majors just barely out of Spring Training in 1984 when Ken Phelps went on the injured list with a broken pinky following a hit by pitch. Davis played just one game with Triple-A Salt Lake City before he got the call that changed his life.

“For a little context, it was April 1,” Davis recalled with a chuckle. “Harold [Reynolds] tapped me on the shoulder and was like, ‘You’re going to The Show.’”

Davis’ career took off from there — remarkably so. The man who spent eight of his nine seasons with Seattle holds the AL/NL record for consecutive games reaching base to start a career (47).

Hernández was just 14 years old when the Mariners scouted him in Venezuela and 16 when he signed, because, he said, “I feel comfortable in Seattle. … These guys treated me really well.”

King Félix rewarded the Mariners’ faith in him with 15 seasons, a 2010 American League Cy Young Award, six All-Star selections and, of course, one perfect game.

“It was fun, man,” Hernández said of his career in the Emerald City and his King’s Court fan section in the right-field corner. “The hitters, when they faced me, they said, ‘Man, I have nightmares when I face you, and all I hear is, ‘K! K! K! K!’”

Martinez is widely regarded as the best designated hitters in history, but he almost didn’t become a Major Leaguer at all. Martinez had a good job (at General Electric) in Puerto Rico, and he was hesitant to accompany his cousin Carmelo to a Major League tryout. They had a heated discussion over a game of ping-pong.

“We got into an argument, and he won,” said Martinez, who was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2019. “So thank you, Carmelo.”

Without Carmelo, “The Double” would not be the two most exciting words to a Mariners fan, and Oct. 8, 1995, would have been just another day in Seattle.

Wilson, who has the distinction of catching more innings than any other Mariner in history (1,281), played 12 of his 14 seasons with Seattle. That, too, might not have happened had the Mariners not sent Bret Boone and Erik Hanson to the Reds for Wilson — Cincinnati’s first-round Draft pick in 1990 — and Bobby Ayala in 1995.

Fans would have also missed out on cheering for Wilson’s inside-the-park grand slam in 1998 at the Kingdome, the career feat he said fans bring up the most. Until last season, Wilson also had the distinction of being a member of every Mariners playoff team.

“I remember I thought I had gotten it off the bat … but it hit the wall,” Wilson recalled. “And then I just saw it rolling toward second base and all that green that was surrounded by the turf there. And there was nobody there, and I knew I was going to have a chance to make it.

“But getting through it? … My legs felt like jelly for the rest of the ballgame.”

The four also recounted their favorite career moments, with Davis recalling the impromptu watch party at the team’s workout facilities in Peoria, Ariz., during Hernández’s perfect game in 2012, and Hernández talking about his grand slam against the Mets, taking 22-year-old phenom Johan Santana oppo. Hernández earned a fist-bump from Martinez as they relived the moment 15 years later.