A Classy Let-Down
A sign at the final Mariners game of the season – and the final game of a stellar career of Edgar Martinez – read liek this: Edgar Martinez is spelled C-L-A-S-S. And that was about all Edgar had going for him on his final night. It ended relatively disappointingly, with the veteran designated hitter grounding into two double plays and with a few pop flies. But, for the second time in as many attended games, I was struck by the fact that the moment was swallowing almost everything else up.
Edgar was always one of my favorite players, ever since the wee old Kingdome days. And I’ll never forget what is now termed “the hit that saved baseball in Seattle.” For that hit, I was sitting in the shoe department of Nordstrom’s in Bellevue Square, watching on the smallish, vertically stacked TVs. In fact, the whole store was pretty mcuh watching those TVs when it happened. It was a pretty exciting time – the first time in the playoffs, and beating the Yankees at that, in such spetacular fashion. Its one for the ages, and one that a loss to Texas can’t ever take away.