Ranking the Seattle Mariners best seasons ever by Pitchers

I’ve already done an article on the greatest seasons in Mariners history by hitters. What about pitchers though? Which pitchers for the Mariners have had the greatest individual seasons in team history?

The list isn’t quite as long as it was for hitters. Pitchers normally have a bit lower WAR than hitters, and it looks like that for the Mariners as well. The Mariners have had 34 hitters with a 5.0 oWAR or higher, but only 22 pitchers. I could’ve pushed it out to a 4.0 WAR and 39 occurrences, but that would just get messy. Props to JJ Putz on a 4.0 WAR back in 2007, though.

It does show how tough it is, or how non-elite Mariners pitchers have been since the turn of the millennium. Not sure if this is a spoiler or not, but there have only been two Mariners since the year 2000 to have a WAR of 6.0 or higher in a season. One should be pretty obvious.

Which Mariners had the greatest pitching seasons in team history?

Anyway, I need to make sure to put in the disclaimer again as I did in the hitting article. This isn’t just a regurgitation of the highest numbers based solely on WAR. I’m looking through the numbers and trying to figure out who had the greatest seasons. There are other things in play. Just like there were for worst contracts (Miguel Batista had a good first year and two awful ones. It was a bad deal, but not all-time awful).

So who all made the list of the greatest pitching seasons in Mariners history? Let’s get started with the older generation and a handful of Mariners who only accomplished a 5.0 WAR or better once in their tenure with the team.

Erik Hanson: 1990 w/5.0 WAR

Matt Young: 1983 w/5.1 WAR

Dave Fleming: 1992 w/5.1 WAR

Jim Beattie: 1984 w/5.1 WAR

Mike Parrott: 1979 w/ 5.2 WAR

The Mariners had a handful of guys throughout their first 25 seasons put together great years while pitching. Each of them only did it once, and barely made it to the 5.0 WAR threshold.

Jim Beattie came over to the Mariners from the Yankees in 1980 and was a pretty solid pitcher for the Mariners. He never seemed to match up great numbers with a lot of innings, until 1984. He threw 12 complete games that season, eclipsing 200 innings for the first time in his career. He had a 3.41 ERA, but 3.2 BB/9, and it would be his last full season pitching.

Then we get to a run of Mariners who pitched their best season early in their careers. Both Dave Fleming and Matt Young did it while they were Rookies. Fleming would finish third in ROY voting in 1992, throwing 228.1 innings, with four shutouts. He hardly struck anyone out, with just 112 K’s.

Matt Young actually made the All-Star game his Rookie Year but didn’t receive any votes for Rookie of the Year (robbery!), even though he had a full WAR higher than anyone who did get a vote. He finished with an ERA of 3.27 through 203.2 innings, with a 131 ERA+. It was a very impressive season for Young, but he would never throw a season above a 2.0 WAR again.

Erik Hanson had thrown a bit for the Mariners, but 1990 was his breakout year. He finished with a 3.24 era in 236 innings, and more impressively, a 2.74 FIP. He’d also finish with a career-high 211 strikeouts, nearly 50 more than he would ever have again in a season. Go check out the Cy Young voting, and you can see how far voters have progressed since then. Roger Clemons had a 10.4 WAR and lost out to someone with a 2.9, all because the guy had 27 wins.

The one that comes in at #8 belongs to Mike Parrott. He threw 13 Complete Games, 229.1 innings, and actually threw a bit out of the pen as well, with eight games as a reliever. His season may not look better than Matt Youngs, but I’m giving massive props to Parrott for the first great pitching season in Mariners history.

#7: Freddy Garcia: 1999: w/5.4 WAR

Freddy came over in the Randy Johnson trade during the 1998 season at the trade deadline. It wouldn’t take long before fans would fall in love with the youngster. His rookie season in 1999 was also his best and is good proof that sometimes you need to look a bit beyond the basic numbers.

Even though he had a 4.07 ERA and a 4.10 FIP, Freddy had some awful luck on BABIP, with a .313 mark against him. The league knew he was good as well, as he would receive votes not only for Rookie of the Year but in the Cy Young voting as well. He lost out on the Rookie of the Year award to Carlos Beltran and would finish 9th in Cy Young voting.

This is a great example of remembering that taking a look at the league as a whole is important. 1999 was the height of PEDs and run-scoring. Teams were scoring 5.08 per game with a slash line of .271/.345/.434. So although a 4.07 ERA might not sound great, that meant Freddy was holding opponents to a full run less per game whenever he took the mound.

Still, it’s hard to think that this year was better than 2001 when he led the league in innings, ERA, HR/9 (just 0.6/9). I’m only ranking the seasons at 5.0 or higher… but It might be worth fudging the rule and making a solid case that 2001 was actually the best year of Garcia’s career, and deserves a spot on the list.

#5: Mark Langston: 1987 w/5.9 WAR. Also, 1988 w/5.6

Langston was a wild pitcher who struck out a lot of hitters. He led the league in walks his Rookie year, and averaged 225 innings and 111 BBs each season, for a 4.5 BB/9 rate. He also led the league in K’s three different times, but was only above 8.7 K/9 once. He threw a ton of innings, which is why the strikeout numbers looked strong.

1987 and 1988 were his best seasons with the team, and probably his 3rd and 4th best seasons of his career. I’m giving the nod to 1987 though as his top season. More strikeouts, better FIP, an insane 272 innings, and 14 complete games.

The fact that he was able to go back to back with such strong reasons was a great sign for the Mariners. I’m not old enough to remember what things were like for the fan base when he was traded away in 1989, but all reports were that people, fans and the team alike, weren’t happy.

It seemed like it had to be done, as Langston wasn’t going to re-sign with the team. Although it was rough at the time, it led to the acquisition of one of the greatest Mariners in team history.

#4: Jamie Moyer: 1999 w/6.5 WAR. Also, 1998 w/5.6, 2002 w/5.6

“I love Jamie Moyer.” I think that’s a pretty universal statement. The only people who don’t like him would have some odd hatred of lefties or soft-tossers. OH! Or maybe bat manufacturers. Then again, they could really like Moyer, since he helped keep them in business.

It’s odd for someone who threw that slow, but he was always breaking bats because of how well he changed speed and located pitches. The late 90s were a great time for Moyer, and the best season of his career came in 1999.

This falls in line with what I mentioned about Freddy Garcia earlier for 1999. Runs were being scored at a premium. So, when Moyer finished with an ERA of 3.87, it was actually quite impressive. He threw 228 innings that year, and finished 6th in the Cy-Young voting in the American League.

I can see the argument for his 1998 season just the year prior. His ERA, WHIP, and FIP were all better. However, a huge part is the runs per 9 for an average pitcher stat. That number was a 5.92 in 1999, and a 5.05 in 1998. An average pitcher facing the same opponents as Moyer would’ve had a 5.92 ERA in 1999. Moyer had a 3.87. That’s a massive difference and earns the nod as his best season.

#3: Hisashi Iwakuma: 2013 w/7.0 WAR

This was an incredible season, and there’s a strong argument that it’s the biggest surprise season we have EVER seen from a Mariners pitcher.

Back in 2012, Hisashi Iwakuma signed with the Mariners, and spent the season split between the bullpen and the starting rotation. He made 30 appearances, 16 of which were as a starter. He seemed pretty good, with a low 3s ERA, some walk issues, but an overall impressive showing for a Rookie who came from overseas.

Maybe we should have seen it coming. After he got into the rotation in 2012, he had a 2.65 ERA as a starter, and a 2.07 in his final ten starts. That 2.65 number would end up being very telling.

In 2013, Iwakuma would finish with a 2.66 ERA and a 3.44 FIP, with a 138 ERA+. He also brought the walks way down, from 3.1 in 2012 to 1.7 in 2013. That was a big reason his WHIP dropped all the way to 1.006, one of the best qualifying marks in all of baseball. He’d also finish 3rd in Cy Young voting because Scherzer had 21 wins that year, but a worse season overall.

Every other season, Iwakuma was a strong pitcher with a WAR in the mid-2s. 2013 was special though and easily takes 3rd in the best seasons by a Mariners pitcher.

#2: Felix Hernandez: 2012 w/5.3 WAR. Also, 2014 w/ 6.4, 2009 w/5.9, 2010 w/7.2, 2013 w/5.1

I sat here for a long time on this one. I wasn’t debating 2009 or 2014 as the greatest season. It was either 2010 when he won the Cy Young, or 2012 when he threw the perfect game.

Everything in 2010 was better. He far and away deserved the Cy Young. He didn’t in 2012 and wasn’t in the top two discussion at all.

But…

The perfect game was in 2012.

It’s so hard to choose. Do you give it the Cy Young or the Perfect game?

I still don’t know. To you, Dear Reader, it’ll seem like I made up my mind here. In fact, this was the first slide I went to write. It’ll probably be the last one I finish. In fact, it is. I’m back here now, and still don’t know.

Screw it. I’m taking 2012. I don’t care that he had three other seasons where he was statistically better. It’s a perfect game. It has only happened 23 times in the history of baseball, and Felix Hernandez is one of them. That means something to me, and it should to you, as well.

It’s why I gave the nod to Edgar in the hitting series (spoiler?), and why I’m giving it to Felix’s 2012 season. Context matters when it comes to greatness. These are the greatest seasons, not just sorting their WAR in a spreadsheet to see which one comes out on top. If I tell you that you could have just one season from Felix, either 2010 or 2012, which would you choose?

It’s incredible that he won the Cy Young in 2010. I’m taking the perfect game though, and it’s why 2012 gets the nod.

#1: Randy Johnson: 1995 w/8.6 WAR. Also, 1997 w/8.0, 1993 w/6.6, 1994 w/5.5

Odd. The greatest hitting season and the greatest pitching season both came from 1995. It’s almost like it was one of the most spectacular and amazing seasons for the Mariners.

I’m sorry, but it’s not even close. No one was going to dethrone The Big Unit. I sure hope it happens, cause it means someone will have an incredible season. For now, though, he takes the top spot. Shoot, he’d take the second spot as well if I was doing it that way.

I talked about it a bit with Edgar. 1995 was so special. It holds a massive place in my head and heart because I was seven years old, and it was my first season really getting into baseball. Shoot, I even had a Randy Johnson shirt I wore that had his caricature and stats on it from him winning the Cy Young.

It also helps that Randy was incredible that year. 18-2, 2.48 ERA, 294 Ks, 193 ERA+, 2.08 FIP, 1.045 WHIP, 6.7 H/9, 0.5 HR/9, 12.3 K/9. You wanna know why I listed all those stats? Because he led the American League in every single one of them other than wins, where he was one behind Mike Mussina. He probably should have won the MVP, but finished 6th, and funny enough, third on the Mariners behind Edgar (3rd) and Jay Buhner (5th).

I love going back and thinking about this season. It was definitely his best as a Mariner. Yeah, 1997 was great, but 1995 was the year the Mariners first made the playoffs. Randy Johnson was a massive part of that, if not the biggest part (figuratively and literally).

There is part of me that gets sad thinking about it though. The what could’ve been. We will save that for another day, and just remember the good times that we had with Randy Johnson.

Well? The Big unit? Felix? Iwakuma? Moyer? How would you rank them in terms of the greatest seasons? This one was a bit more straightforward and in line with what the statistics say, but it was still a lot of fun to go through. Hopefully, we can see some new entrants on the list soon. I’m talking to you Mr. Robbie Ray and Mr. Logan Gilbert.