Seattle Mariners Top Ten Starting Pitchers in Franchise History

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2. Randy Johnson

Randy Johnson needs no introduction.  He is a legend in Seattle and in MLB.  He has been inducted into the Seattle Mariners Hall of Fame and to Major League Baseball’s Hall of Fame.  Randy Johnson came to the Seattle Mariners from the Montreal Expos in a trade with Gene Harris and Brian Holman for Mark Langston.  Johnson was among the most feared pitchers in baseball because of his dominant pitching arsenal (fastball, slider), his intimidating height and wild mullet hairstyle and mustache, and his angry scowling demeanor on the mound.  He was traded because he was too wild and not consistent.  It really wasn’t until he talked to Nolan Ryan in 1992 that he was able to make some adjustments that would help him.

The Big Unit pitched for the Mariners for ten years compiling 130 wins and 74 losses in 1838.1 innings.  He also had a 3.42 ERA and 3.34 FIP.  He achieved a 1.250 WHIP with a 2.45 strikeout to walk ratio striking out 2162 batters and walking 884.  He had 51 complete games, 19 shutouts and 2 saves.  He earned 39.3 in pitchers WAR in that decade for the Mariners.

The Big Unit has the most strikeouts and shutouts in Mariners history.  He ranks second in complete games and pitchers WAR.  He ranks third all-time in wins, win-loss percentage, FIP, WHIP, and ERA.  He’s fourth in strikeout to walk ratio.  He holds the Mariners records for most strikeouts in a game with 19 and he did it twice, most strikeouts in a year with 308, most consecutive wins at 16, and highest single season winning percentage of .900 in 1995.  He was a 5 time All-Star with the Mariners.  He had the first no-hitter in Mariners history on June 2, 1990.  In 1995 he won the American League Cy Young award.

Unfortunately his time in Seattle would come to an abrupt end.  The Big Unit was traded to the Houston Astros for Minor Leaguers, Freddy Garcia, Carlos Guillen, and John Halama on July 31, 1998.  He would go on to help the Astros make the playoffs and become a free agent after the season.  His career spanned a total of 22 years and 7 teams.  He would win a World Series and earn World Series MVP with the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2001.  He won four more CY Young awards and pitched a perfect game in 2004.  Since retiring from baseball he has pursued a career in photography.  In January of 2015 he became an assistant to the General Manager in Arizona.

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