The Seattle Mariners are sending No. 51 to the rafters next season. Again.
Seattle announced Monday it will retire the number for longtime left-handed pitcher Randy Johnson, who helped save the Mariners during their epic 1995 run to the ALCS.
The Mariners announced Johnson’s number retirement on the 35th anniversary of his no-hitter against the Detroit Tigers, Seattle’s first no-hitter in franchise history. Johnson won 130 of his 303 career games in a Mariners uniform, which ranks second behind only Felix Hernandez among Seattle pitchers.
Why Are The Mariners Retiring No. 51?
Not only was Johnson a dominant and fear-inducing pitcher on the mound, but he helped put Seattle baseball on the map.
After two uneven seasons with the Montreal Expos, the Mariners acquired Johnson with Gene Harris and Brian Holman for Mark Langston. Johnson became a superstar in the Pacific Northwest, not only on the mound but by creating the legendary “Big Unit” nickname thanks to his 6-10, 225-pound physique.
âRandy is both one of the greatest pitchers in Major League Baseball history, and one of the most important figures in our organizationâs history,â said Mariners chairman and managing partner John Stanton in a press release.
Johnson became arguably the best starting pitcher in the game, and along with superstar center fielder Ken Griffey Jr., was one of the two faces of baseball that played in the Pacific Northwest. He was a Cy Young Award finalist four times between 1992-97 and won the award in 1995 when he willed the Mariners to the AL West title in the “Refuse to Lose” year by going 18-2 with a 2.48 ERA and 294 strikeouts.
âDuring the 1995 season that changed the future of this franchise, his 18-2 record (in a 145-game season) was properly recognized with his first Cy Young Award,” Stanton said. “More importantly, and somewhat lost to history, the Mariners were an amazing 27-3 in his 30 starts that season, an incredible 24 games over .500, compared to a record of 52-63 when any other starter took to the hill for the club.
“His domination that year carried the Mariners to our first-ever postseason, which led directly to the construction of T-Mobile Park and the Mariners remaining safely in Seattle forever.”
Though he never got the Mariners over the hump to the World Series — Johnson went 2-3 with a 3.52 ERA in six playoff appearances with Seattle — Johnson has the two highest-WAR seasons of any pitcher in Mariners history in 1995 (8.6) and 1997 (8.0).
Plus, Johnson’s trade out of Seattle even benefitted the Mariners. The Mariners’ acquisition of John Halama, Freddy Garcia and Carlos Guillen, while dealing Johnson to the Houston Astros at the 1998 trade deadline, set them up for four straight 90-plus-win seasons and consecutive ALCS berths in 2000 and 2001.
What Mariners Numbers Are Retired?
Johnson’s No. 51 will go to the rafters next season, which is unique since the No. 51 will officially be retired by the Mariners this year as well.
Johnson’s number will technically be only the fourth to go to the rafters, joining Griffey’s No. 24, Edgar Martinez (No. 11), Jackie Robinson’s league-wide retired No. 42 and Ichiro Suzuki, who also wore No. 51 and will have that number sent to the rafters at T-Mobile Park on Aug. 9.
Though the date and opponent of Johnson’s number-retirement ceremony will be announced later — look for the Arizona Diamondbacks to be the opponent, since he pitched for them and they will be coming to Seattle next season — the Mariners still felt it important to commemorate the date of his first no-hitter to announce the occasion.
“From his arrival in Seattle in 1989 and over the next decade, Randy helped define Mariners baseball in our region and across the country,” Mariners president of business operations Kevin Martinez said. “He was as fierce as any player in baseball, and he provided Mariners fans with some of the greatest moments in Seattle sports history.”
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