SEATTLE -- Randy Johnson made his first appearance at Safeco Field since Aug. 24, 2006 Friday, allowing one run and six hits in 5 1/3 innings and exiting to a raucous standing ovation. It served as perhaps the final appearance in Seattle for the Big Unit. Johnson, who fell short of win No. 299, notched 130 victories in 9 1/2 seasons with the Mariners but left under unsavory circumstances when management said they weren't interested in re-signing him because of an ailing back. Johnson was dealt with the Houston Astros and eventually landed in Arizona, where he won a World Series.Mariners fans watched as Johnson, Ken Griffey Jr. and Alex Rodriguez departed in the span of three years, and the organization has been striving -- in vain -- to match those glory days.
"I'm hoping it's good because he gave his heart and soul to this organization," Griffey said about Johnson's reception from the fans. "Sometimes over the years, (the sentiment) becomes a lot better and people understand that things happen in professional sports. But I hope (the reception) is the same as what they gave me (in 2007 with Cincinnati) because he's a big part of why people are (playing baseball in Seattle) instead of somewhere else, you know a different city."
Griffey and Johnson were part of some powerhouse clubs in Seattle. The 1995 club advanced to the postseason for the first time in the organization's 19 years and then defeated the Yankees in the ALDS. Two years later, Seattle captured the AL West again with a team that featured Griffey, Johnson, Rodriguez, Jay Buhner and Edgar Martinez either near or in their prime.
"We were all young, trying to figure out what we were going to do," Griffey said. "We fed off each other. We asked a lot of questions. For us it was a lot of on-the-job training. We had a lot of fun doing things and we were able to get some victories when it counted."
Griffey has two strange but fond memories of Johnson: on the second to final day of the 1997 season, Johnson came out of the bullpen to capture his 20th win with two scoreless innings and Oct. 3, 1993, Johnson played one inning in left field at the Metrodome.
"One was business, trying to get us to the playoffs," Griffey said. "One was to go out there and do something he had never done. Lou (Piniella) allowed us to be us. That was the best part. Everybody could be individuals and have a common goal."
