Edgar Martinez
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Edgar Martinez (born January 2, 1963 in New York, New York, but raised in the Maguayo neighborhood of Dorado, Puerto Rico[1]) is a longtime Major League Baseball player who retired at the end of the 2004 season. He is unique in that he spent his entire major-league career with the Seattle Mariners, in the American League West division. In downtown Seattle, there is a street named "Edgar Martinez Drive".
Martinez is considered by some to be the greatest designated hitter (DH) in history. Edgar Martinez, Ted Williams, Babe Ruth, Stan Musial, Rogers Hornsby, and Lou Gehrig are the only players in history with 300 home runs, 500 doubles, a career batting average higher than .300, and a career on-base percentage higher than .400. When Martinez would bat, Large sections of the stands would shout "ED!", followed by a different section shouting, "GRRRR!"
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[edit] Career
In 1982, the Seattle Mariners signed Martinez to a minor league contract. Martinez worked his way through the Mariners minor league system, making stops at Chattanooga and Calgary. Martinez made his major league debut in 1987, and finally became a fixture in the Mariners lineup in 1990. He started out as a third baseman and won an American League batting title in 1992. Edgar tore his hamstring during an exhibition game at BC Place Stadium in Vancouver, B.C., just before the 1993 season, and never fully recovered. [2] Martinez became a full-time DH in 1995. To date, he is the only DH ever to have won a batting title (in 1995 with a .356 average).
His eighteen seasons with the Mariners netted him seven All-Star appearances, along with two batting titles and five Silver Slugger awards. He finished first or second in on-base percentage (OBP) in 6 different years, and top 5 in OBP in 10 different years. Over the seven year span of 1995-2001 he was probably the best and most consistent right-handed hitter in the game. During this time he hit .329 with a .445 on-base percentage and a .574 slugging percentage for an OPS of 1.019. In 1996, he became only the fifth player in the 20th century to hit 50 doubles in two consecutive seasons (and one of those was the strike-shortened 1994 season). [3]
He is best remembered for his performance in the 1995 American League Division Series against the New York Yankees in which he hit .571 and was on base 18 times in 5 games. In game 4 of that series, he hit a three run homer, then a grand slam home run that gave the Mariners a 10-6 lead en route to an 11-8 victory. The RBI set a single-game postseason record. The win knotted the best-of-five series at two games apiece and forced game 5. Down 5-4 in the 11th inning of that decisive game, Martinez hit a two-run double (called "The Double" by Mariners fans) off Jack McDowell, winning the game for the Mariners, 6-5.
Baseball lore says that Edgar Martinez "saved Seattle baseball" with that double. While his series-winning hit did help build the groundswell that the Washington State Legislature eventually had to respond to (by enacting legislation to fund Safeco Field), it was one of many moments in a "miracle run" by the Mariners in September and October 1995 that changed public sentiment towards the team and towards public financing of a baseball-only stadium as a partial replacement for the Kingdome.
During his career Martinez was a fan favorite, liked for his clutch hitting, playing his entire carrer with the mariners, and always being willing to sign autographs for fans.
The Mariners have not issued Martinez' #11 jersey since he retired. Under Mariners' team policy, he will not be eligible to have his jersey formally retired until 2010 (when he is eligible for the Baseball Hall of Fame for the first time, see below). However, it is highly unlikely that any Mariner will ever wear that number again.
He will also be inducted into the Mariners Hall of Fame on June 2nd, 2007.[4]
[edit] Possible Induction into the National Baseball Hall of Fame
Martinez will be on the ballot for the National Baseball Hall of Fame after the 2009 season. His chances for induction are considered controversial because he spent two thirds of his career as a designated hitter. [5] Martinez was not given regular playing time in the major leagues until 1990 (when he was 27), despite hitting extremely well in the minors and in his first September call-up to the Mariners. Because of the late start, he has not amassed the totals for hits (fewer than 2,300) and home runs (309, 100th all time) that some associate with a Hall of Fame slugger. But Martinez was more of a gap hitter, as evidenced by his 514 career doubles (35th all time). And because of his incredible plate discipline, he is ranked 69th all time in number of times on base (3619). Compared to the 164 Hall of Fame hitters, Martinez's on-base percentage (.418) would rank him 13th, and his .933 OPS would rank him 17th. He has the sixth highest OPS for a right-handed hitter ever, behind Foxx, Greenberg, Hornsby, McGwire and DiMaggio. Since 1946 only two Hall of Famers have finished with an on-base percentage better than Martinez's .418: Ted Williams and Mickey Mantle.
[edit] Recognitions
- 1990 Finished 6th in the batting title and 3rd in on-base percentage.
- 1991 Finished 5th in on-base percentage, 10th in Walks, 7th in Times on Base and 4th in Hit By Pitch.
- 1992 Won the American League batting title. Led the League in Doubles, Finished 5th in On-base percentage, 2nd in Slugging Percentage, 3rd in OPS, 8th in Runs, 7th in Hits, 8th in Total Bases, 2nd in Runs Created and 5th in Extra-Base Hits.
- 1992 Awarded the American League (AL) Silver Slugger at 3B
- 1995 Won the American League batting title. Led the League in On-base percentage, OPS, Games, Runs, Doubles, Runs Created and Times on Base, 3rd in Slugging Percentage, 2nd in Hits, 3rd in Total Bases, 4th in RBI, 2nd in Walks, 2nd in Extra-Base Hits and 2nd in Intentional Walks.
- 1995 Awarded the AL Silver Slugger at DH.
- 1996 Finished 8th in Batting Average, 2nd in On-base percentage, 9th in Slugging Percentage, 4th in OPS, 8th in Runs, 2nd in Doubles, 2nd in Walks, 8th in Runs Created, 7th in Extra-Base Hits, 4th in Times on Base and 6th in Intentional Walks in American League.
- 1997 Awarded the AL Silver Slugger at DH. Led in Times on Base, Finished 2nd in Batting Average, 2nd in On-base percentage, 8th in Slugging Percentage, 4th in OPS, 9th in Hits, 10th in Total Bases, 2nd in Walks, 3rd in Runs Created, 7th in Bit By Pitch, 7th in Intentional Walks and 4th in Grounding into Double Plays.
- 1998 Led the AL in On-base percentage and Times on Base, 7th in Batting Average, 6th in OPS, 10th in Total Bases, 3rd in Doubles, 3rd in Walks, 6th in Runs Created and 9th in Extra-Base Hits.
- 1999 Led the AL in On-base percentage, 4th in Batting Average, 4th in OPS and 7th in Walks, .
- 2000 Led the AL in RBI, 6th in On-base percentage, 10th in Slugging Percentage, 8th in OPS, 10th in Home Runs, 9th in Runs Created and 7th in Times on Base.
- 2001 Awarded the AL Silver Slugger at DH and finished 2nd in On-base percentage, 8th in Slugging Percentage, 5th in OPS, 6th in Doubles, 9th in RBI, 8th in Walks, 6th in Sacrifice Flies, .
- 2003 Awarded the AL Silver Slugger at DH and finished 4th in On-base percentage and 7th in Walks.
- In October 2004, S. Atlantic Street between 1st and 4th Avenues S., just south of Safeco Field, was renamed Edgar Martinez Drive S. in his honor.
- Only Puerto Rican player to be honored with the Roberto Clemente Award, given by Major League Baseball for humanitarian service.[6]
- In 2005, he was named the third baseman on Major League Baseball's Latino Legends Team.
- The MLB award given annually for the best designated hitter is named the Edgar Martinez Award.
- Street out in front of Safeco Field is named Edgar Martinez Drive.
[edit] Personal life
- Though born in New York, Martinez returned to his family's native Puerto Rico in 1965 when his parents divorced. He grew up in Dorado and graduated from American College (Puerto Rico). (He speaks English with a mild Spanish accent as a result.) A beloved figure in Seattle, he currently lives in Bellevue, Washington with his wife and children, and owns a promotional merchandise agency, Branded Solutions by Edgar Martinez in Redmond, Washington. [7]
- Edgar enjoyed some of his best seasons as a hitter despite having been diagnosed with strabismus, an eye condition, in 1999. [8] He overcame the condition through strenuous exercise and by avoiding such things as watching movies.
- He is the cousin of Carmelo Martínez.
[edit] Banking
Martinez is one of the founders of Plaza Bank, founded in 2005 as Washington's first "Hispanic" bank. [9]
[edit] Landmarks
- October 4, 1990: In his first full year, Martinez finished 6th in batting average and 3rd in on-base percentage in the American League
- October 4, 1992: As a third baseman, Martinez wins his first American League batting title with a .343 average and finishes second with a .544 slugging percentage
- October 2, 1995: Martinez wins his second American League batting title with a .356 average and led the AL with a .479 on-base percentage and finished third with a .628 slugging percentage
- October 7, 2001: Martinez hits over .300 for the 10th time in his career helping lead the Mariners to an American League best ever 116 regular season wins
- August 9, 2004: Martinez announced that he would retire from baseball at the end of the season
- September 17, 2004: He got his 1,000th career run batted in as a designated hitter. He holds the record for RBIs at the position.
- October 2, 2004: Officially retired at a huge ceremony in Safeco Field, attended by then-Governor of Washington Gary Locke, Seattle mayor Greg Nickels, and Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig.
- October 26, 2004: Martinez presented with the 2004 Roberto Clemente award, as "the player who best combines outstanding baseball skills with devoted work in the community"
- Seattle Mariners All-Time Leader in On-base percentage (.418), Games (2,055), At Bats (7,213), Runs (1,219), Hits (2,247), Total Bases (3,718), Doubles (514), RBI (1,261), Walks (1,283), Singles (1,409), Runs Created (1,559), Extra-Base Hits (838), Times on Base (3,619), Hit By Pitch (89), Sacrifice Flies (77) and Grounding into Double Plays (190).
- Holds Seattle Mariners single season records for On-base percentage (.479 in 1995), OPS (1.107 in 1995) and Walks (123 in 1996).
- Ranks 89th on Major League Baseball All-Time Batting Average List, 21st in All-Time On-base percentage, 63rd in All-Time Slugging Percentage, 38th in All-Time OPS, 100th in All-Time Total Bases, 35th in All-Time Doubles, 100th in All-Time Home Runs, 36th in All-Time Walks, 59th in All-Time Runs Created, 69th in All-Time Extra-Base Hits, 69th in All-Time Times on Base, 85th in Hit By Pitch, 85th in Sacrifice Flies, 81st in Intentional Walks and 94th in Grounding into Double Plays.
[edit] Regular season stats
| G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | CS | BB | SO | BA | OBP | SLG | TB | SH | SF | IBB | HBP |
| 2055 | 7213 | 1219 | 2247 | 514 | 15 | 309 | 1261 | 49 | 30 | 1283 | 1202 | .312 | .418 | .515 | 3718 | 10 | 77 | 113 | 89 |
[edit] See also
- Top 500 home run hitters of all time
- List of famous Puerto Ricans
- Players from Puerto Rico in MLB
- MLB designated hitter statistics
[edit] References
- ^ http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/sports/mariners/edgarmartinez/final_years.html
- ^ http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/sports/mariners/edgarmartinez/finnigan.html
- ^ http://www.baseballlibrary.com/baseballlibrary/ballplayers/M/Martinez_Edgar.stm
- ^ http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/mariners/2003539505_webedgar24.html
- ^ http://www.abarim.com/edgar.htm
- ^ http://www.abarim.com/edgar.htm
- ^ http://www.brandedsolutions.com
- ^ The Sporting News, May 7, 2001
- ^ http://seattle.bizjournals.com/seattle/stories/2005/12/26/focus6.html
[edit] External links
- Career statistics at Baseball Reference
- Bio at the official Mariners website
- Seattle Weekly article
- Profile at Baseball Page
- Page at Baseball Library
| Preceded by Kirby Puckett |
American League Player of the Month July & August, 1992 |
Succeeded by Frank Thomas |
| Preceded by Julio Franco |
American League Batting Champion 1992 |
Succeeded by John Olerud |
| Preceded by Manny Ramirez |
American League Player of the Month June, 1995 |
Succeeded by Garret Anderson |
| Preceded by Paul O'Neill |
American League Batting Champion 1995 |
Succeeded by Alex Rodriguez |
| Preceded by Jermaine Dye |
American League Player of the Month May, 2000 |
Succeeded by Albert Belle |
| Preceded by Manny Ramirez |
American League RBI Champion 2000 |
Succeeded by Bret Boone |
| Preceded by Alfonso Soriano |
American League Player of the Month May, 2003 |
Succeeded by Jason Giambi |
Categories: Articles lacking sources from October 2006 | All articles lacking sources | 1963 births | American League All-Stars | Living people | Major league designated hitters | Major league third basemen | People from New York City | People from Seattle | Major league players from New York | Puerto Rican baseball players | Seattle Mariners players | American League batting champions | American League RBI champions
