12/18/2024

Topps 206


It was in November. I ordered some lucky bags from an online sports card shop. A week later, those lucky bags arrived. After opening a bag, I found a card that I had never thought of before.

 

I found a Topps 206 relic card. It’s a card with a piece of Bret Boone’s game-worn jersey. It’s a card from 2002. While seeing this card, I began to think about some questions.

 

Bret Boone spent 14 seasons in the majors, hitting .266/.325/.442 with 252 home runs and 1021 RBI in 1780 games. In particular, he spent 7 seasons with the Mariners, slashing .277/.336/.478 with 143 home runs and 535 RBI. Looking at his stats, I’m just wondering how important he is in the Mariners franchise.

 

Total Bases (Mariners, Career)

Player

TB

Edgar Martinez

3718

Ken Griffey Jr.

3495

Ichiro Suzuki

3292

Kyle Seager

2458

Jay Buhner

2445

Alvin Davis

1875

Raul Ibanez

1801

Alex Rodriguez

1753

Dan Wilson

1568

Bret Boone

1491

 

In the Mariners franchise history, 3 players each had 3000+ total bases. Edgar Martinez and Ken Griffey Jr. were elected to the Hall of Fame. Ichiro Suzuki will soon become a Hall of Famer. Kyle Seager and Jay Buhner each had 2000+ TBs in their careers with the Mariners. Bret Boone had 1491 total bases in 7 seasons with the Mariners. 1491 TBs are the 10th most in the Mariners franchise history.

 

Home Runs (Mariners, Career)

Player

HR

Ken Griffey Jr.

417

Edgar Martinez

309

Jay Buhner

307

Kyle Seager

242

Alex Rodriguez

189

Nelson Cruz

163

Alvin Davis

160

Raul Ibanez

156

Bret Boone

143

 

Ken Griffey Jr. blasted 417 home runs in his career with the Mariners and he’s the home run leader in franchise history. Moreover, Edgar Martinez and Jay Buhner each smashed 300+ home runs in the Mariners uniform. Furthermore, Kyle Seager spent 11 seasons with the Mariners and he crushed 242 home runs. Bret Boone had 143 home runs, which are the 9th most in the Mariners franchise history.

 

Extra Base Hits (Mariners, Career)

Player

XBH

Edgar Martinez

838

Ken Griffey Jr.

788

Kyle Seager

565

Jay Buhner

557

Ichiro Suzuki

473

Alex Rodriguez

396

Raul Ibanez

392

Alvin Davis

382

Bret Boone

326

 

In addition, let’s look at extra base hits. Edgar Martinez was certainly a dangerous hitter in the Mariners franchise history. He spent 18 seasons with the Mariners and collected 2247 hits. 838 of those hits were extra base hits. Furthermore, Ken Griffey Jr. had 788 extra base hits during his career with the Mariners. Moreover, Kyle Seager and Jay Buhner each had 500+ extra base hits. Ichiro Suzuki collected 2542 hits in his 14 seasons with the Mariners and 473 of those hits were extra base hits. Bret Boone had 326 extra base hits, which ranked 9th in the Mariners history.

 

Runs Batted In (Mariners, Career)

Player

RBI

Edgar Martinez

1261

Ken Griffey Jr.

1216

Jay Buhner

951

Kyle Seager

807

Alvin Davis

667

Ichiro Suzuki

633

Raul Ibanez

612

Alex Rodriguez

595

Bret Boone

535

 

Finally, there are 2 players who collected 1000+ RBI for the Mariners. Again, those 2 players are Hall of Famers. Edgar Martinez had 1261 RBI with the Mariners and Ken Griffey Jr. collected 1216 RBI in the Mariners uniform. Kyle Seager had 807 RBI in his career with the Mariners and Jay Buhner had 951 RBI. In Boone’s 7 seasons with the Mariners, he had 500+ RBI. In particular, from 2001 to 2003, he finished each season with 100+ RBI.


Looking back at Bret Boone’s career, he surely played an important role in franchise history. He was with the 2001 Mariners, a team that won 116 games in a single season. And the 2001 season is certainly Boone’s best season in his career. In that season, Boone slashed .331/.372/.578 with 37 home runs and 141 RBI. He finished 3rd in the AL MVP voting. Additionally, Boone is still in the top 10 of several hitting categories in franchise history. Well, he’s not a member of the Seattle Mariners Hall of Fame. But the Mariners Hall of very good, for sure.

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