Top 10 Best Seattle Mariners Players of All Time

The Seattle Mariners, despite their many ups and downs throughout franchise history, have been blessed with some of the most talented players in the history of Major League Baseball. Some of the most iconic names in the history of the sport have spent substantial time in Seattle, but these 10 players are the best to ever put on a Mariners jersey. 

Who Are the Best Seattle Mariners Baseball Players of All Time?

1. Ken Griffey Jr.
2. Edgar Martínez
3. Ichiro Suzuki
4. Randy Johnson
5. Félix Hernández
6. Alex Rodriguez
7. Jay Buhner
8. Jamie Moyer
9. Alvin Davis
10. Dan Wilson

1. Ken Griffey Jr.

• 1997 AL MVP
• 13-time All-Star
• Four-time AL Home Run Leader

Not only is Ken Griffey Jr. the best Seattle Mariners player ever, but he’s also one of the best baseball players ever, period. Griffey’s career inspired nothing short of pure awe in those who watched it unfold. He was one of the most all-around talented players to ever grace the MLB, and he did most of it with the Seattle Mariners, who rostered him between 1989 and 1999 and again in 2009-2010.

During his career, Griffey was awarded the AL MVP award in 1997 and was selected to 13 All-Star games. Griffey was also awarded a Gold Glove in 10 different seasons thanks to his game-changing abilities in center field. He was truly a five-tool player, including his ability to hit for power, as evidenced by leading the American League in home runs in four separate seasons. Ken Griffey Jr. was such an extraordinary player that we’ll be lucky to see anyone like him ever again.

2. Edgar Martínez

• Seven-time All-Star
• .312 career batting average
• Five Silver Slugger awards

While Ken Griffey Jr. might be the best Seattle Mariner of all time, Edgar Martínez is likely the most beloved. He was an incredibly talented player who served as both a designated hitter and third baseman. Throughout his career, he was one of the best hitters in the entire MLB. He won five Silver Slugger awards, which are given to the best hitter at each position in both the AL and NL. He was also voted to seven All-Star games during his time in the league. In addition, he was the AL Batting Champion (awarded to the player with the highest batting average) in both 1992 and 1995.

In addition to his incredible talent on the field, Martínez is so beloved thanks to his loyalty to the Mariners, as he spent his entire career with the club between 1987 and 2004. Martínez was also an unlikely story in the MLB. He wasn’t drafted but rather attended a tryout by the Seattle Mariners and was signed to a small contract. The rest is history.

3. Ichiro Suzuki

• 2001 AL MVP
• 2001 AL Rookie of the Year
• 10-time All-Star

Having spent almost two decades in the MLB and nearly a decade playing professional baseball in Japan before that, Ichiro Suzuki will go down as one of the best baseball players in the history of the game. He spent much of that time with the Seattle Mariners, including his MLB debut season in 2001, for which he was awarded both the AL MVP and AL Rookie of the Year awards.

A few years later, in 2004, he set the record for most hits in a single season with 262, a record that still stands as of 2023. Ichiro was voted an All-Star 10 times, received 10 Gold Glove awards (all in consecutive seasons between 2001 and 2010), and was the AL Batting Champion twice. He also received three Silver Slugger awards. Ichiro’s list of accolades goes on and on, which made him an easy candidate for the Seattle Mariners Hall of Fame and likely a first-ballot Hall of Famer once he becomes eligible.

4. Randy Johnson

• Five Cy Young Awards
• 10-time All-Star
• Baseball Hall of Fame member

Randy Johnson is the best player to ever play pitcher for the Seattle Mariners and is one of the best pitchers in the history of the MLB. Over the course of his long career in the major leagues, of which he spent 1989 through 1998 with the Mariners, Johnson amassed a whopping five Cy Young Awards. He simply dominated batters throughout his career.

Johnson led the MLB in strikeouts in nine separate seasons and led in ERA in four. With the Mariners, he managed to pitch a no-hitter in 1990, which was the first in franchise history. Johnson appeared in 10 All-Star games during his time in the league. He has since been inducted into both the Mariners Hall of Fame and the National Baseball Hall of Fame. This is thanks to his impressive 3.29 lifetime ERA and legendary 4,875 career strikeouts, along with his ability to deliver in clutch moments.

5. Félix Hernández

• AL Cy Young winner in 2010
• Pitched a perfect game
• Six-time All-Star

Behind Randy Johnson, Félix Hernández is the second-most legendary Mariners pitcher and the fifth-best player in the history of the franchise. Hernández made his Major League debut with the Seattle Mariners in 2005 and stayed with the team throughout the duration of his career until his retirement in 2019. In that time, King Felix, as he was known to the Seattle faithful, made a name for himself by completely shutting down opposing lineups.

For this ability, he was awarded the AL Cy Young award in 2010, a season in which he finished with a 2.27 ERA. One of his most legendary moments came in 2012 when he threw a perfect game, the first and only such instance in Mariners history. Hernández led the MLB in earned run average in both 2010 and 2014 and was named to a total of six All-Star games during his time in the league.

6. Alex Rodriguez

• Three-time AL MVP
• 10 Silver Slugger Awards
• 14-time All-Star

As a result of Alex Rodriguez’s wildly successful and controversial career with the New York Yankees, people tend to forget that Rodriguez played seven seasons for the Seattle Mariners. In fact, Rodriguez began his career in Seattle in 1994 and stayed with the team until 2000. Rodriguez played shortstop for the team, and in his first full season in the MLB, he led the American League in batting average (with a momentous .358) and also hit 36 home runs and 123 RBIs.

During his time with the Mariners, Rodriguez secured four Silver Slugger Awards and went on to win another six over the course of the rest of his career. Despite the controversial nature of his career, Alex Rodriguez remains one of the most talented people to ever play the sport. He was a three-time MVP, a 14-time All-Star, and hit 696 home runs by the time his playing days came to a close.

7. Jay Buhner

• All-Star in 1996
• Gold Glove in 1996
• Seattle Mariners Hall of Fame

As a result of being on the same team as the likes of Ken Griffey Jr., Edgar Martinez, and Alex Rodriguez, Jay Buhner isn’t as much of a household name as some of the other Mariners superstars of the late 1990s, but to true fans, Buhner is one of the best to ever play for the team. He was a consistent power hitter that played outfield for the team between 1988 and 2001.

Buhner was so consistent, in fact, that he was able to hit over 40 home runs in three consecutive seasons between 1995 and 1997. In 1996, he was both selected for the All-Star game and a Gold Glove for outstanding outfield play. By the time Buhner retired after the Mariners’ legendary 2001 season, he had hit 310 home runs and maintained a career on-base percentage of .359. After his retirement, Buhner was elected to the Seattle Mariners Hall of Fame.

8. Jamie Moyer

• 2003 All-Star
• Seattle Mariners Hall of Fame
• 2,441 career strikeouts

Jamie Moyer began his career in professional baseball in 1986 with the Chicago Clubs. He would retire in 2012 with the Colorado Rockies. Over the course of his career, Moyer played for eight different teams across the MLB, but the one place where he truly found a sense of home was with the Seattle Mariners.

Moyer played for the Mariners for 11 seasons between 1996 and 2006. As such, he was a part of perhaps the best era in Mariners baseball and was a vital part of their pitching lineup. In 2003, he was rewarded for his efforts with a trip to the All-Star game after winning 21 games and posting an earned run average of 3.27. In their dominant 2001 season, in which they won 116 games, the Mariners relied heavily on Moyer. He responded by winning 20 games in the regular season and another three games in the postseason before they were ultimately eliminated in the ALCS.

9. Alvin Davis

• 1984 AL Rookie of the Year
• 1984 All-Star
• Seattle Mariners Hall of Fame

Alvin Davis began his career in Major League Baseball in 1984 with the Seattle Mariners after they selected him in the sixth round of the draft. When he made his major league debut with the team in 1984, he exceeded all expectations. In his first 47 games in his major league career, he amazingly managed to get on base in every single one. And by the end of the season, he’d managed a .284 batting average and hit a respectable 27 home runs and 116 RBIs.

Davis’s efforts that season earned him both the AL Rookie of the Year award and a trip to the All-Star game. Davis was consistently able to hit for power and hit 29 home runs in 1987 which was a career-high. By the time his career in the MLB was over, Davis had hit for a .280 average and 160 home runs. After his retirement, he was inducted into the Seattle Mariners Hall of Fame.

10. Dan Wilson

• 1996 All-Star
• Seattle Mariners Hall of Fame
• Spent ten years with Mariners

Dan Wilson played catcher for the Seattle Mariners between 1994 and 2005. Along with the likes of Ken Griffey Jr. and Edgar Martinez, Wilson played for some of the most iconic teams in Mariners history. Part of Wilson’s prestige comes from being the primary catcher for Randy Johnson and calling some of his best games. With the two working together, Johnson was able to strike out 19 batters in a single game on two different occasions.

Wilson was also more-than-capable of pulling his weight on offense as well. In the 1996 season, he was able to hit 18 home runs and 83 RBIs and maintained an OPS of .774. For his efforts that season, he was selected for the only All-Star game of his career. Defensively, Wilson was about as solid as they come. In 2001, he only made one error all season. For these reasons and more, Wilson was selected for the Seattle Mariners Hall of Fame.

Honorable Mentions

• Adrian Beltre
• Bret Boone
• Mike Cameron
• Freddy Garcia
• Raul Ibanez
• Mark Langston
• Tino Martinez
• John Olerud
• Harold Reynolds
• Omar Vizquel

FAQ