The 10 Best Draft Picks the Mariners have ever made in the MLB Draft

Alex Rodriguez: 1993: Round 1, Pick 1, 38.1 (117.6) WAR

A-Rod. It's not a stretch to say that when you bring up the most polarizing names ever to don a baseball jersey, that he is up there at the top of the list alongside guys like Bonds, Clemens, and Rose, and it all started in Seattle.

No one in modern history has come into the game and dominated as quickly and at such a young age as A-Rod did. Many players would struggle to put up any of these numbers throughout their entire career, yet this is the line that a 20-year-old Alex Rodriguez put up in 1996 for the Mariners.

.358/.414/.631. 36 HR, 15 SB, 54 2B, 141 R, 123 RBI, 161 OPS+, AS, SS, 2nd in MVP, 9.4 WAR

Are you kidding me? That's something most people would shoot for in MLB the Show, and it would still be hard to do at 20 years old in that game. Yet, A-Rod did that in the majors at just 20. It's insane. And yes, that's his age 20 season since his birthday is in late July.

That being said, it's all clouded in distrust. When did he start taking performance enhancers? What statements from him can you believe? He is pretty good with the media and has an inherently likeable persona, so many people forgive him faster than you would someone like Clemens or Bonds or even Rose, who are easy to hate and mistrust.

It still hangs over him, as enough people distrust him that he isn't getting many HOF votes, and will likely be left out. If we can forget about the bad taste he left while leaving and the PED clouds, we are left with a SS who was incredibly fun to watch and have on the Mariners throughout the start of his career.