Randy Johnson HOF as a Mariner?!

[Thisnamewasntaken]

I was watching the local news last night and they said RJ is going to go in as a Mariner and would be the first! I really hope this is true, I know everyone has thought it would be him wearing a Diamondbacks hat but if it's a Mariners hat like I'm hearing this is exciting!

 

[Davis_Mike]

I would be willing to bet that he will either wear a Dbacks hat or a plain hat like Maddux. Signs are pointing towards him going in as a Dback, so I am not sure where the local news is getting their information.

His best years were in a Dbacks uniform.

 

[seattlefan75]

If it is left up to the voters I herd they would put him in as a Dback just because of his best years were in arizona but he spent more years and more of his stats came with the mariners not to mention he broke through into the league with us. So if it was left completely up to him which is how it should be I would bet money he would be a mariner

 

[williewilliejuan]

 

[StanMarsh51]

With Mariners: 130-74 record, 3.42 ERA (128 ERA+), 1.25 WHIP, 1838 innings, 2.45 K/BB
With D-Backs: 118-62 record, 2.83 ERA (164 ERA+), 1.07 WHIP, 1630 innings, 4.99 K/BB

He did pitch about a season's more worth of innings with the Mariners, but he was much better overall with the D-Backs, particularly with his 4 Cy Youngs there.

 

[calsnowskier]

Clearly.

He got 300 with the Giants. Seems a no-brainer to me.

 

[calsnowskier]

Seriously...

It is actually a closer call than I was expecting it to be. I thought it would be a no-discussion DBacks hat, but he was with the Ms longer than I had remembered.

That said, I think he still should go in with a DBacks hat. 4 CYs and a ring are hard to contend with. I would be OK with either hat, though.

 

[Wamu]

I was watching the local news last night and they said RJ is going to go in as a Mariner and would be the first! I really hope this is true, I know everyone has thought it would be him wearing a Diamondbacks hat but if it's a Mariners hat like I'm hearing this is exciting!

I had to look this up but going by his #'s it makes sense. He had the most W's of his career in Seattle (130), most K's (2,162) & won his first Cy Young w/ them. But what he did from '99-'02 in Arizona was insane.

 

[Mariners_44]

Randy played 10 straight years with the Mariners, and became who he was as a solidified star while in Seattle. He had 6 straight years in AZ before leaving town only to come back for two career ending years that didn't amount to much. If Cano plays with the M's for the next 6 years, wins one WS, and maybe even a MVP then gets traded. Does he go into the HOF a Mariner or a Yankee? I bet it's a Yankee.

 

[broncosmitty]

When I think of Randy Johnson, I think of the Mariners.

 

[EVille3]

Let's not forget Randy pitched in the KingDome. Imagine his numbers if he pitched in SafeCo...

 

[StanMarsh51]

Randy played 10 straight years with the Mariners, and became who he was as a solidified star while in Seattle. He had 6 straight years in AZ before leaving town only to come back for two career ending years that didn't amount to much. If Cano plays with the M's for the next 6 years, wins one WS, and maybe even a MVP then gets traded. Does he go into the HOF a Mariner or a Yankee? I bet it's a Yankee.

Although in all fairness, a the first 4 of those years in Seattle were pretty mediocre on the whole, and he had another year where he made just 8 starts....so he was only great for about half his tenure in Seattle.

 

[seattlefan75]

http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/mlb-b...-question--mariners-or-d-backs-231321137.html

I think its BS that the HOF makes the call on what team he should retire in the hall with. Its HIS career he should make the choice on what team he wants to wear into the hall? I would rather have him split with two teams into the hall then give him a white cap thats stupid as shit

 

[StanMarsh51]

http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/mlb-b...-question--mariners-or-d-backs-231321137.html

I think its BS that the HOF makes the call on what team he should retire in the hall with. Its HIS career he should make the choice on what team he wants to wear into the hall? I would rather have him split with two teams into the hall then give him a white cap thats stupid as shit

That used to be the policy, but thanks to Wade Boggs being paid off by the Rays to wear a TB cap in the hall, they got rid of it.

 

[calsnowskier]

That used to be the policy, but thanks to Wade Boggs being paid off by the Rays to wear a TB cap in the hall, they got rid of it.

Reggie and Winfield were part of the problem as well, but to lessor degrees.

Reggie was torn between the Spanks and the A's, then, all of the sudden, Reggie got a life-time job with the Yanks. Winfield HATED George, so he chose San Diego instead. At least both of those decisions were based on a legit argument between two teams. Boggs simply took the cold-hard-cash for a team that should never have been considered.

 

[Mariners_44]

Although in all fairness, a the first 4 of those years in Seattle were pretty mediocre on the whole, and he had another year where he made just 8 starts....so he was only great for about half his tenure in Seattle.

Would you say that those down years in Seattle meant more for his career than the down two in AZ? Those years he was growing in Seattle, where as the remaining two in AZ were more of a ride into the sunset. If he wears a DBacks hat it would be a disservice to Seattle just the same if it is flip flopped. I say he goes in with a mullet and a designation of M's & DBack.

 

[PolarVortex]

I was watching the local news last night and they said RJ is going to go in as a Mariner and would be the first! I really hope this is true, I know everyone has thought it would be him wearing a Diamondbacks hat but if it's a Mariners hat like I'm hearing this is exciting!

A common misconception among fans is that the player gets to choose which hat he wears. He doesn't. The Hall makes the choice andd it invariably comes down to which franchise the player made his biggest impact with. Needless to say, he won't be a wearing a Giant hat nor a Yankee hat nor an Expo hat nor an Astro hat. As great as he was in Seattle, he was better in Arizona. So, it's hard to say what the Hall will decide. Maybe it is so damn close that they will give Randy the final say.

An interesting note here is that he left Arizona for San Francisco and picked up his 300th win with the Giants. Why would he leave Arizona when he is on the verge of a very marketable career achievement? Was it RJ's choice to leave and go close to home (Walnut Creek) to win his 300th game and end his career? Or, did Arizona think he was done and chose not to pay him in 2009? If it is the latter, and he left Arizona with bad feelings, then we may see him in a Mariner hat. After all, and as Mariner fans know, RJ has been known to hold a grudge.

 

[Davis_Mike]

Randy played 10 straight years with the Mariners, and became who he was as a solidified star while in Seattle. He had 6 straight years in AZ before leaving town only to come back for two career ending years that didn't amount to much. If Cano plays with the M's for the next 6 years, wins one WS, and maybe even a MVP then gets traded. Does he go into the HOF a Mariner or a Yankee? I bet it's a Yankee.

If Cano has 4 MVP seasons, has his best years in terms of average & HR(s) while also winning a WS in a Mariners uniform, he will go in as a Mariner.

 

[dude82]

RJ will probably go in as a Diamondback and he honestly should. It doesn't take away from what he did with the M's, nor does it take away the experience of watching him pitch in an M's uniform. He was and is a Seattle sports icon and always will be whether he's wearing an M's hat in his HOF plaque or not. This is where he went from a flame-thrower who couldn't locate the strike zone with a GPS to a dominant pitcher and it would be impossible to think of his career without thinking of his time with the Mariners.

It's just that four consecutive Cy's, a WS championship in which he practically pitched them to a title by himself and a perfecto makes it hard to make the case that he had the bigger impact, statistically, or team-wise in Seattle. You could make the case that the degree of difficulty was higher in Seattle thanks to the DH and the ballpark in which he made his home starts, but I don't think the people making the decision for which hat he'll wear will go that in-depth.

Besides, we'll be represented next year when Junior gets in, followed by when Edgar gets in and then when Ichiro gets in. Our Hall of Fame player drought is ending soon.

 

[Chewbaccer]

The Big Unit pitched his best that half season he was a Houston Astro.

But, seriously, I think the blank cap for Randy would be the right call.