Special for CLARITY
Puerto Rico has six Boricuas in the Cooperstown Hall of Fame: Roberto Clemente, Orlando “Peruchín” Cepeda, Roberto Alomar, Iván Rodríguez and Edgar Martínez. They are Legends on the Isle of Enchantment and are in the Hall of Fame as immortals of Major League Baseball. We will dedicate this article to that great human being full of humility named Edgar Martínez.
Edgar, to Puerto Rican parents, was born in New York on January 2, 1963. His parents moved to Barrio Maguayo in Dorado where Edgar grew up and was educated. At the age of 11 his parents decided to return to New York and he made the decision to stay living in Dorado with his grandparents. About this experience he told me the following:
“It was the best thing that could have happened to me. “My grandparents gave me discipline, and the structure that helped me develop as a person and as a baseball player.”
In the summary of the autobiography and book titled “Edgar” the following is described about his childhood and adolescence during this period (Edgar: An Autobiography by Edgar Martinez | Goodreads).
“Patience, persistence and the most unlikely of circumstances brought Edgar Martínez from a poor neighborhood in Dorado, Puerto Rico, to the spotlight in Seattle, where he spent the entirety of his 18-year Major League career with the Sailors. At last, his path is destined for one last stop: the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown.”
In this autobiography Edgar says that long before developing playing skills and establishing himself as one of the best MLB players of his generation, Martínez perfected his hitting skills by hitting rocks in the backyard of his home. He attended school in Dorado where he had to work various jobs until a chance tryout for the Mariners at age 20 changed everything. His cousin Carmelo Martínez was his mentor from an early age.
Four years after being signed he debuted in the Major Leagues on September 12, 1987 at the age of 24 with the Seattle Mariners where he played 18 consecutive seasons. Some of his MLB achievements include: chosen to participate in 7 all-star games, American League Batting Champion in 1992 and 1995. He won the Silver Sluger Award in 1992, 1995, 1997, 2001 and 2003, also the Roberto Clemente Award for his philanthropic and community work in 2004. Leader in RBIs in the American League in 2000 and his number was retired by the Mariners in 2017. In 2019 justice was done and he was selected to the Cooperstown Hall of Fame. He had 2,247 hits in his MLB career, 309 home runs and a lifetime batting average of .312.
We took advantage of his little visit to Houston with the Mariners for a three-game series and were able to interview one of the most down-to-earth and humble players we have ever met. Without egos, very serious and respectful, he answered our questions and those of the Latin press present during that series at the Astros stadium.
We began the interview by introducing ourselves and congratulating him on his historic achievements (Hall of Fame and so on) and being recently named hitting coach of the Seattle Mariners.
His career as a professional player ended in 2004. Since then he worked as a hitting instructor for the Mariners with minor league players (“rubin” instructor). In 2015 he was asked to be coach batting for the big team, which I accept. He was a coach for 2 ½ years and did not return until the new manager, Dan Wilson, appointed in August 2024, asked for his help at the end of the season.
He has an “Edgar Martínez” foundation to give scholarships to Hispanic and African American students in schools with the greatest economic need in the Seattle area. The Edgar and Holli Martínez Foundation annually funds ten high school scholarships worth $20,000 each for Latino students in Washington state. Additionally, funds raised will go toward the foundation’s primary focus of providing scholarships and support programs for African American graduate students to pursue master’s degrees in teaching from the University of Washington, Washington State University, and Seattle University. Students must maintain at least a 2.7 GPA (taken from the foundation page Edgar and Holli Martinez Foundation | Foundation Directory | Candid (foundationcenter.org) .
We asked him about the great moments in his MLB career and he answered the following:
“The moments that have been most significant were when they called me for the first time to join the Major Leagues, the first all-star game in 1992, in the “playoff” in 1995 when we beat the Yankees in the league final.” .
¿What have been difficult moments in your 18 years in the majors??
“At the beginning of the season in 1993 and after winning the batting championship in 1992, I had a lesson that kept me out of the game and affected me a lot and in 2002 I had another lesson that also affected me a lot.”
Edgar came to the Mariners in the last 2 months of the season (August 22-August 23) when they appointed new manager Dan Wilson, who was a teammate for 10 seasons and knows his qualities as a hitter. He asked him to work as a hitting “coach”, which Edgar accepted.
We asked him about his goals and expectations with the team since it reached the end of the season.
“They are giving the necessary effort, they are going to continue fighting, they are not giving up. There are several options to enter and they know it.”
¿You’re going to be with the team next year?
“I still don’t know that and I haven’t made the decision. You have to wait to make a decision like that. “You have to meditate and think carefully before accepting a commitment like that.”
No matter where Edgar Martínez is next season, he has left his mark on MLB baseball. In his honor and for his quality as a designated hitter, the “Edgar Martínez Award” was created, which is awarded to the outstanding designated hitter in the American League. It has been awarded annually to the most outstanding American League (AL) designated hitter (DH) in Major League Baseball. (MLB) since 1973. He became immortal since his number was retired by the Mariners in 2017 and in 2019 he was selected to the Cooperstown Hall of Fame. One of our great players in MLB. There is a state highway in Dorado named after him, PR-963, which is now Avenida Edgar Martínez.
CLARIDAD joins the many of us who are proud that Edgar Martínez represented us, leaving his legacy in MLB. Example for new generations.
To see this video interview and others from MLB and other sports visit: El Fogón de Jorge – Pitirre Press – YouTube.
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