For better or worse, starting pitchers who made an impact for the Seattle Mariners
Marco Gonzales will have the honor of starting his third consecutive opening day on Thursday night versus the Giants, as he aims to improve on his 1-1 record. This will be his first opening day at T-Mobile Park, after his two previous starts came at the Tokyo Dome in Bunkyo, Tokyo and Minute Maid Park in Houston, Texas.
Felix Hernandez holds the Mariners mark for opening day starts with 11, as well as the most wins, with a 7-2 record. His first start on opening day in 2007 was extremely memorable, as he led Seattle to a 4-0 home win over the Oakland Athletics with 12 strikeouts in eight innings.
Hernandez had another memorable opening day in 2011, when he pitched a complete game in a 6-2 win on the road, also against the Athletics. Overall, he never allowed more than three earned runs in his 11 starts on the way to a 1.53 ERA, while he struck out 10 or more batters on three occasions. (The only other opening day complete game in Mariners history was by Mark Langston in 1989, albeit in a losing effort on the road to the Athletics.)
Randy Johnson certainly deserves a mention, with his six opening day starts representing the second-most in franchise history. “The Big Unit” had a 2-0 record in those six starts, of which a ball club record five came at the Kingdome.
Jamie Moyer has the most opening day starts for the Mariners at Safeco Field/T-Mobile Park, going 1-2 in four appearances. Mark Langston has the worst winning percentage on opening day in franchise history courtesy of a 0-3 record, with all three games coming on the road.
Diego Segui was the first opening day starter in club history in 1977, albeit in a 7-0 loss to the Angels. However, the start was also relevant for the fact Segui played for the Seattle Pilots in their lone season in 1969.
What are your favorite moments from previous opening days for the Seattle Mariners? Let us know in the comments section below.
