Seattle Mariners Biggest Home Runs In Post Season History

On Saturday night, Mariners fans watched the Chicago Cubs, Miguel Montero, hit a series-defining home run in game one of the NLCS. As the Cubs fans were cheering wildly, M’s fans collectively thought, “we’ve seen that before”. Yes, back in the M’s playoff days, the team did have massively big, clutch home runs. Here are the biggest in franchise post-season history.

It may have been a long time ago, but Mariners fans still remember the extra-inning dingers of Jay Buhner in the1995 ALCS and Edgar Martinez in the 2000 ALDS. They were epic moments at the time, and now they have become iconic plays that M’s fans always remember.

1995- Jay Buhner Three-Run Shot In The 11th

In 1995 the Mariners flipped their history on its head. In the eighteen years between then and becoming an MLB franchise in 1977, the Mariners had finished with a record above .500% twice (in 1991 and 1993). They had never finished above third place in the division, and, most importantly, they had never made the playoffs.

The explosively potent offense of 95′ changed all of that with every one of their one hundred and eighty-two home runs.

They finished the strike-shortened season with a record of 79-66, winning the AL West Division, and earning a spot in the ALDS to play the New York Yankees.

In what was arguably one of the most dramatic ALDS series in the 90’s, the Mariners capped off the five-game thriller with an extra-inning, walk-off double by Edgar Martinez to defeat the evil empire. The improbable victory meant that the Mariners would go on to face the Cleveland Indians for a chance to advance to the World Series.

That brings us to game three of the ALCS. The teams had split the first two match-ups and now had the chance to grab the upper-hand in the series.

Buhner started the Mariners off strongly by smashing a home run to left field in the second frame. Ken Griffey Jr. would score another run in the fourth to extend the lead to 2-0. However, the Mariners let the lead slip away.

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First, the Indians tacked on a run in the bottom half of the fourth via a sacrifice fly. Later in the eighth, the M’s would give up a single that brought in the Whitesox second run. The game would stay tied at two until the eleventh.

Buhner, who had already provided some pop for the M’s earlier in the ballgame, stepped up to the plate for his fifth at-bat of the night. Buhner hadn’t recorded a hit or even reached base since his second inning long bomb. But, Buhner was ready for redemption.

On a 0-1 count, Buhner squared up on a slightly outside fastball that was waist-high. He dropped his bat immediately after contact and watched the ball sail a few rows deep on the right field side of the park. With two runners on base, Buhner reclaimed the Mariners lead, putting them ahead 5-2.

It was more than enough to seal the M’s victory, as the game ended by the same score. Now the Mariners had the advantage in the best of seven series. Unfortunately, as we all remember, the Mariners would go on to lose the next three games (twice being shut out by Indians pitchers).

Buhner would go on to be one of the all-time great Mariners power-hitters, but few home runs were more special than that blast in the eleventh inning of mid-October.

2000- Edgar Martinez’s Two-Run Home Run In The Tenth

Just five years after the Buhner bomb, the Mariners had established themselves as baseball annihilators. The four years following 95′ the M’s battered over two hundred and thirty balls out of the park in each year.

The 1997 Mariners even set the American League record for balls smashed into the stands with two hundred and sixty-four that season. So it’s fair to say that home runs were an undeniable part of the culture in Seattle baseball.

When the 2000 season finished, the M’s wouldn’t surpass two hundred home runs, but they would still hit one hundred and ninety-eight long bombs. Their power surge remained steady in game one of the ALDS versus the Chicago Whitesox.

The Mariners didn’t waste any time putting runs on the board. Behind an A-Rod single and a fielder’s choice groundout by John Olerud, the M’s were already up 2-0. In the very next frame, they would pad their lead as Joe Oliver knocked the ball into the crowd. The score was now 3-0.

The lead wouldn’t last for long. The Whitesox charged back in the third scoring two runs on a triple and a wild pitch. The continued to batter the M’s scoring two more runs in fourth coming off another triple and a solo home run. The score was now 4-3 Whitesox.

The score would remain tied until the seventh when Mike Cameron singled to Raul Ibanez. David Bell tried to give the M’s the lead on that same play but didn’t have enough speed to beat the throw to home plate. The game was tied again, this time at four. It would stay that way until the tenth inning.

With Cameron on base in the tenth and one man out, the speedster stole second to put himself in scoring position. Edgar Martinez now had the chance to bring him home. Martinez would do more than just bring Cameron home; he would bring himself home too.