Report: Mariners name Edgar Martinez hitting coach
The Seattle Mariners, presumably desirous of a more consistent team offense, named Edgar Martinez their new hitting coach on Saturday afternoon.
The news was broken by Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times on Twitter, and he also noted the ramifications of the move for previous hitting instructor Howard Johnson:
Speaking with Greg Johns of MLB.com, Mariners general manager Jack Zduriencik explained the reasoning behind the decision to bring Edgar on board: "In the end, it just wasn't happening for us. If you look at the numbers alone, we were disappointed in how the offense was performing. We all clearly believe this is a better offensive club than what we were producing. As a result and with our relationship with Edgar over the years, I think his resume speaks for itself."
Jack Z. added that the club believes in Martinez's ability to 'reach' the hitters on a coaching level: "Here's a guy that we all know how he became the hitter he became, the things that he did to become -- in our view -- a Hall of Famer, and as a result, we hope he brings that to the table. We're very confident that the things Edgar will speak to our players about and bring to the table will be a real positive impact. We'll see going forward."
Martinez, of course, is a revered figure in Seattle, having played 18 seasons with the Mariners. Over the course of his record-setting career, Edgar slashed .312/.418/.515 and is now the focus of debate over his Hall of Fame credentials (due to playing almost all of his career as a designated hitter).