The Seattle Mariners 2004 season was their 28th, and they finished last in the

American League The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league ...

West West or Occident is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sun sets on the Earth. Etymology The word "west" is a Germanic word passed into some ...

at Ichiro Suzuki set the major league record for hits in a season on October 1, breaking

George Sisler George Harold Sisler (March 24, 1893 – March 26, 1973), nicknamed "Gorgeous George", was an American professional baseball first baseman and player-manager. From 1915 through 1930, he played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the St. Louis B ...

's 84-year-old mark with a pair of early singles.

Offseason

*December 15, 2003: Quinton McCracken was traded by the Arizona Diamondbacks to the Mariners for Greg Colbrunn and cash.Quinton McCracken Statistics
Baseball-Reference.com *December 19, 2003: Scott Spiezio was signed as a free agent.

Regular season

At the All-Star Break, the Mariners had lost nine straight and were at 17 games behind the division-leading Texas Rangers. On October 1, Ichiro Suzuki set the major league record for hits, breaking

's 84-year-old mark with a pair of early singles. It was his 258th hit of the season. Later in the game, Suzuki got another hit, giving him 259 this season and a major league-leading .373 average. Fireworks exploded after Suzuki's big hit reached the outfield, creating a haze over Safeco Field, and his teammates mobbed him at first base. The crowd of 45,573 was the ninth sellout this season. After the record breaking hit, Suzuki ran to the first-base seats, bowed respectfully and then shook hands with Sisler's 81-year-old daughter, Frances Sisler Drochelman, and other members of the Hall of Famer's family. Fans in downtown Tokyo watched Suzuki in sports bars and on big-screen monitors. Seattle's hitting coach that season was

Paul Molitor Paul Leo Molitor (born August 22, 1956), nicknamed "Molly" and "the Ignitor", is an American former Major League Baseball (MLB) player and former manager of the Minnesota Twins, who is in the Baseball Hall of Fame. During his 21-year baseball car ...

. Sisler set the hits record in 1920 with the

St. Louis Browns The St. Louis Browns were a Major League Baseball team that originated in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, as the Milwaukee Brewers. A charter member of the American League (AL), the Brewers moved to St. Louis, Missouri, after the 1901 season, where they p ...

over a 154-game schedule. Suzuki broke it in the Mariners' 160th game. Suzuki's hit came off Ryan Drese, boosting Suzuki to 10-for-20 lifetime against him. Suzuki's sixth-inning infield single came off John Wasdin. After Suzuki's 258th hit, he scored his 100th run of the season when the Mariners batted around in the third, taking a 6–2 lead on six hits. Suzuki's first-inning single was his 919th hit in the majors, breaking the record for most hits over a four-year span. Bill Terry of the New York Giants set the previous record of 918 hits from 1929 to 1932. Suzuki has 921 hits in four seasons.

Opening Day box score

Mariners' lineup

Draft

In the 2004 Major League Baseball draft, the Mariners selected

Matt Tuiasosopo Matthew Petelu Tuiasosopo (born May 10, 1986) is an American former professional baseball utility player and the current manager of the Gwinnett Stripers, the Triple-A affiliate of the Atlanta Braves. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) fo ...

in the third round for their first pick overall. Out of the 48 players selected by the Mariners in 2004, 5 have played in Major League Baseball including Tuiasosopo, Rob Johnson,

Mark Lowe Mark Christopher Lowe (born June 7, 1983) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) Seattle Mariners, Texas Rangers, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, Cleveland Indians, Toronto Blue Jays, and Detr ...

Michael Saunders Michael Edward Brett Saunders (born November 19, 1986) is a Canadian former professional baseball outfielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Seattle Mariners, Toronto Blue Jays, and Philadelphia Phillies. He was nickname ...

, and James Russell.

Season standings

Record vs. opponents

Transactions

*June 9: Quinton McCracken was released. *July 23: John Olerud was released. *August 6: Bill Pulsipher was purchased by the Seattle Mariners from the Long Island Ducks (Atlantic).Bill Pulsipher Statistics
Baseball-Reference.com *September 13: Bill Pulsipher was released.

Roster

Player stats

Batting

Starters by position

''Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in''

Other batters

''Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in''

Pitching

Starting pitchers

''Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts''

Other pitchers

''Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts''

Relief pitchers

''Note: G = Games pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts''

Awards and honors

* Edgar Martínez, Designated Hitter,

Roberto Clemente Award The Roberto Clemente Award is given annually to the Major League Baseball (MLB) player who "best exemplifies the game of baseball, sportsmanship, community involvement and the individual's contribution to his team", as voted on by baseball fans a ...

Farm system

Johnson, Lloyd, and Wolff, Miles, ed., ''The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball'', 3rd edition. Durham, North Carolina: Baseball America, 2007

Major League Baseball Draft

The following is a list of 2004

Seattle Mariners The Seattle Mariners are an American professional baseball team based in Seattle. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. The team joined the American League as an expansion team ...

draft picks. The Mariners took part in the June regular draft, also known as the Rule 4 draft. The Mariners made 48 selections in the 2004 draft, the first being

shortstop Shortstop, abbreviated SS, is the baseball or softball fielding position between second and third base, which is considered to be among the most demanding defensive positions. Historically the position was assigned to defensive specialists wh ...

in the third round. In all, the Mariners selected 18

pitchers In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw a ...

, 13

outfielders An outfielder is a person playing in one of the three defensive positions in baseball or softball, farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder. As an outfielder, their duty is to catc ...

, 6

catchers Catcher is a Baseball positions, position in baseball and softball. When a Batter (baseball), batter takes their at bat, turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the (home plate, home) Umpire (baseball), umpire, and recei ...

, 6 shortstops, 3

first basemen A first baseman, abbreviated 1B, is the player on a baseball or softball team who fields the area nearest first base, the first of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. The first baseman is responsible for the majori ...

, 1

third baseman A third baseman, abbreviated 3B, is the player in baseball or softball whose responsibility is to defend the area nearest to third base — the third of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. In the scoring system us ...

, and 1 second baseman.

Draft

Key

Table

References

*Game Logs: :1st Half
Seattle Mariners Game Log
on ESPN.com :2nd Half
Seattle Mariners Game Log
on ESPN.com *Batting Statistics:''
Seattle Mariners Batting Stats
on ESPN.com *Pitching Statistics:''
Seattle Mariners Pitching Stats
on ESPN.com

External links

2004 Seattle Mariners at Baseball Reference2004 Seattle Mariners team page at www.baseball-almanac.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:2004 Seattle Mariners Season Seattle Mariners Season, 2004 Seattle Mariners seasons 2004 in sports in Washington (state)