The Seattle Mariners1995 season was the team's 19th, and the regular season ended with a record of 79-66 and the franchise's first ever American LeagueWest division title. After trailing the California Angels by as many as 15½ games during the season, the Mariners mounted an amazing comeback to tie the Angels at the end of the regular season, and defeated the Angels in a one-game tiebreaker.
With the cloud of potential relocation hanging over the team stemming from the poor state of repair of the Kingdome, the Mariners' late-season comeback, playoff run, and Martinez' double in particular, are credited with "saving baseball in Seattle", and spurred public funding for a new stadium, Safeco Field, which opened in July 1999.
Despite the Mariners' defeat in the ALCS, and their three subsequent postseason appearances, the impact the 1995 season had on keeping the team in Seattle is one of the key reasons why it is widely regarded by Seattle fans as the most memorable season in franchise history.
Offseason
November 29, 1994: Felix Fermin signed as a Free Agent with the Seattle Mariners. [1]
December 21, 1994: Jay Buhner signed as a Free Agent with the Seattle Mariners. [2]
December 21, 1994: Eric Anthony was released by the Seattle Mariners. [3]
Regular Season
Randy Johnson won the Cy Young Award. The award came at the end of a banner year. Johnson (18-2, 2.48 ERA, 294 strikeouts) narrowly missed becoming the first AL Triple Crown pitcher (leading the league in wins, ERA, and strikeouts) since Detroit's Hal Newhouser accomplished the feat in 1945. [4]
His .900 winning percentage broke Ron Guidry's 1978 record, and his strikeouts per nine innings ratio of 12.35 broke the record held by Nolan Ryan. [4]
June 1, 1995: Juan Pierre was drafted by the Seattle Mariners in the 30th round of the 1995 amateur draft, but did not sign. [5]
July 31, 1995: Marc Newfield was traded by the Seattle Mariners with Ron Villone to the San Diego Padres for a player to be named later and Andy Benes. The San Diego Padres sent Greg Keagle (September 17, 1995) to the Seattle Mariners to complete the trade. [6]
August 15, 1995: Vince Coleman was traded by the Kansas City Royals to the Seattle Mariners for a player to be named later. The Seattle Mariners sent Jim Converse (August 18, 1995) to the Kansas City Royals to complete the trade. [7]
Season standings
Note: Teams played 144 games instead of the normal 162 as a consequence of the 1994 strike. Seattle and California each played 145 games due to the one-game tiebreaker.
