SeaTown Sports Top 100 (#10-#1)
Brian and Kevin count down the top 100 professional Seattle sports athletes of all time.
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In celebration of surpassing 100 subscribers, SeaTown Sports is counting down the top 100 professional Seattle sports athletes of all-time. This list will not include individual athletes like Apolo Ohno or Michael Chang and it does not include any college stars who did not play in Seattle professionally (think Steve Emtman or Kelsey Plum). Also, you won’t see any Seattle Kraken athletes on the list. We just haven’t seen any individual performers at a high enough level in the past three seasons in the deep. Kevin and Brian hope this list provides an opportunity for fun discussion as our readers keep engaging with us moving forward.
#10 - Russell Wilson, Seahawks
Key Accomplishments: 9x Pro Bowl, 4x top 5 in AP Offensive Player of the Year, 1x 2nd team All-Pro, 1st in passing yards, passing TDs, completions in Seahawks history, Super Bowl winner
I loved Russell Wilson. He was one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL for the majority of his career in Seattle. He led the Seahawks to a Super Bowl. He was fun to watch. And though he was corny at times, and maybe self-centered behind the scenes, he was a good guy for the community, and by all means, a decent teammate. I always felt that with Russell Wilson behind the line of scrimmage, the Seahawks did not have to worry about the most important position on its roster. They could focus on other parts of the team, and because of that, it seemed like the Seahawks were always a threat to win the Super Bowl when No. 3 was a Seahawk. Things ended weirdly, but when the dust settles, I think people will rightfully recognize Russell as one of the best Seahawks ever.
#9 - Bobby Wagner, Seahawks
Key Accomplishments: 9x Pro Bowl, 6x First Team All-Pro, 3x Second Team All-Pro, led NFL in tackles three times, ranks 1st in tackles for loss and 3rd in quarterback hits in Seahawks history
As I mentioned on the podcast, many people around the NFL don’t realize how good Bobby Wagner is and was as a linebacker.
In a video clip, some former NFL players and writers are in a round table when one member mentions that Bobby Wagner will make the Hall of Fame. The other person questions it and says “really?” The response was “Did you know he is a six-time first-team All-Pro?” The guy was flabbergasted and I think that shows how little the country knows about Bobby.
This man is so good that he once went an entire season without a missed tackle. Mike Singletary and Ray Lewis have seven first-team All-Pro selections and Bobby is just one behind them. He deserves to be a first-ballot Hall of Famer and the best defensive player to wear the blue and grey.
#8 - Felix Hernandez, Mariners
Key Accomplishments: 2010 Cy Young, 5x top 10 Cy Young, 6x All-Star, ranks 1st in wins, 1st in ERA, 2nd in shutouts, 1st in strikeouts, and 1st in innings pitched in Mariners history
There may be no stronger bias in this top 100 list than the bias that I (Brian) have toward Felix Hernandez. Watching Felix pitch every five days was a cathartic, spiritual, and uplifting experience. The swagger mixed with the execution was like no other player in Mariners history. Felix’s dominance happened to come at a time where my wife and I were having a second child. We named that kid Felix. (Not named after per se, but inspired by).
Felix Hernandez recorded 200 strikeouts five different times as a Mariner. He is 37th all-time in strikeouts in MLB history despite playing to only 33 years old. He had seven seasons with an ERA under 3.50. And Felix’s peak was as good as any in MLB history. Between 2009 and 2014, Felix these numbers:
2009 - 2.49 ERA, 238 2/3 innings, 217 K’s
2010 - 2.27 ERA, 249 2/3 innings, 232 K’s
2011 - 3.47 ERA, 233 2/3 innings, 222 K’s
2012 - 3.06 ERA, 232 innings, 223 K’s
2013 - 3.04 ERA, 204 1/3 innings, 216 K’s
2014 - 2.14 ERA, 236 innings, 248 K’s
Absolutely dominant. And the coolest promotion in sports with the King’s Court.
#7 - Edgar Martinez, Mariners
Key Accomplishments: Baseball Hall of Fame, “The Double”, 7x All-Star, 5x silver slugger, 2x batting champ, 18 seasons all in Seattle
EDDDDDDDDDGAAAAARRRRRRR! The easiest chant and one of my favorites to yell growing and going to Mariners games. The central star to the most famous play in Seattle sports history, Edgar was also one of the best and maybe most underrated hitters in the MLB when he played. There are plenty of statistics justifying Edgar’s place in the Hall of Fame, but my favorite evidence of his greatness was his absolute dominance of the best closer to ever walk the earth, Mariano Rivera. Against Rivera, Edgar hit .579/.652/.1.053 in 23 plate appearances (including the postseason). His 1.705 OPS against Rivera is the highest of any hitter with a minimum of seven plate appearances.
And people often forget that before “The Double”, Edgar put the Mariners on his back in game four of a series when the Mariners were down 2-1. The guy was as clutch as it gets.
#6 - Lauren Jackson, Storm
Key Accomplishments: HOF, 3x WNBA MVP, 1x Defensive POY, 2x 1st team All-Def, 3x 2nd team All-Def, 7x All-Star, 7x first-team All-WNBA, career 18.9 and 7.7, scoring per game is 7th all-time in WNBA history
Just imagine if Shawn Kemp had three NBA MVPs. Or Russell Wilson had three NFL MVPs. They would be considered one of the greats in their sport’s history. That is Lauren Jackson. Her accolades are unrivaled, even compared to Griffey. And maybe most importantly to Seattle, she brought championships home to the city. She was 6’5 and hit 3’s with ease. She defended, she scored in the post, and she could take people off the dribble. How about this stretch of play between 2003 to 2007?
2003: MVP, 21.2 points, 9.3 rebounds, 1.2 steals, 1.9 blocks, 52% effective FG
2004: 2nd in MVP, 20.5 points, 6.7 rebounds, 1.0 steals, 2.0 blocks, 53.5% effective FG
2005: 2nd in MVP, 17.6 points, 9.2 rebounds, 1.1 steals, 2.0 blocks, 49.6% effective FG
2006: 4th in MVP, 19.4 points, 7.6 rebounds, 0.8 steals, 1.7 blocks, 57.5% effective FG
2007: MVP, Defensive Player of the Year, 23.8 points, 9.7 rebounds, 1.0 steals, 2.0 blocks, 56.8% effective FG
All five of these seasons she was named first team all-WNBA. She was Dirk, she was Breanna, she was Hakeem. LJ was incredible.
#5 - Walter Jones, Seahawks
Key Accomplishments: Pro Football Hall of Fame, 9x Pro Bowls, 4x first team All-Pro, 2x 2nd team All-Pro
It is hard to talk about how good an offensive lineman is among other greats in sport like Lauren Jackson, Ichiro and Russell Wilson. There simply aren’t enough stats to present the case for those in the trenches. But Seattle sports fans know that Walter Jones was incredible. There are a few stats that help. Jones only had nine penalties called against him in his 12-year career and only allowed 23 sacks on 5500 passing downs which comes out to a sack percentage of 0.42%. Pretty ridiculous.
But opponents of Walter Jones said it best when describing him. Patrick Kerney, who later played in Seattle, said this of Jones:
"He’s 330 pounds yet he moves as if he’s 250,” defensive end Patrick Kerney said. “He’s violent when he needs to be and when it’s time to finish the play or push you by the quarterback, that’s when he exerts all his strength.”
“It’s like wrestling a bear for three hours,” Kerney said.
#4 - Ichiro, Mariners
Key Accomplishments: 2001 Rookie of the Year and AL MVP, 10x All-Star, 10x Gold Glove, 3x Silver Slugger, single-season hits record of 262, hit .310 or better in 9 of 11 first seasons in Seattle, 3rd in WAR, 1st in average, 2nd in runs, 1st in hits, 4th in doubles, 1st in triples, 6th in RBI and 1st in SB in M’s history
One big “what if” in Seattle sports history is what if Ichiro was in the major leagues before the age of 27? Most rookies debut in their early 20s. What would Ichiro’s numbers look like if he had just three more seasons of pre-prime production? I don’t know if it’d put Ichiro higher on this list, but the hypothetical speaks volumes of the awesome reality that was Ichiro’s career. Think about it. At the age of 44 for the Miami Marlins, he had 50 hits and a .255 average. Wouldn’t a .255 average have looked nice in the 2024 Mariners lineup?
Ichiro was the best Seattle Mariners player up until 2009/2010 when Felix, another first-name-basis player came onto the scene. And as the best player on the Mariners, Ichiro did it all. And it all seemed normal. Consistent base hits. Excellent range in right field. A demon on the base paths. And a mysterious personality off the field.
#3 - Gary Payton, Sonics
Key Accomplishments: Basketball HOF, 9x All-Stars, 2x First Team All-NBA, 5x Second Team All-NBA, 2x Third Team All-NBA, NBA Defensive Player of the Year (1996), 9x All-Defense Team, Sonics all-time leader in points, assists and steals
Payton’s No. 4 rank all-time in technical fouls is not included in the above-listed accomplishments. The enduring image of Gary Payton in my head is him using his 6-4 frame and a side-dribble to back down his defender. While doing this, he is jawing and talking trash.
But to limit The Glove’s legacy to his trash-talking ability would be a disservice. He was one of the best defenders NBA in the 1990s. He progressively became a better distributor of the basketball, averaging 7 assists or more between 1994 and 1997, and then 8 assists or more between 1997 and 2003. His durability was also impressive. At one point, Payton started 356 consecutive games for the Sonics. And that streak ended because coach Nate McMillan suspended Payton for “conduct detrimental to the team.”
#2 - Sue Bird, Storm
Key Accomplishments: 4x WNBA champion, 13x All-Star, 5x 1st team All-WNBA, 3x 2nd team All-WNBA, WNBA all-time assist leader
The best point guard to ever play the position - men or women - is Sue Bird. Even though Gary Payton is my favorite basketball player ever, there is no doubt that Sue Bird belongs here on this list. Her accomplishments alone put her in rarified air in Seattle sports history. Five times first-team all-league and a four-time champion? C’mon. Insane.
Sue Bird won with Lauren Jackson. Sue Bird won with Breanna Stewart. Sue won when she was young and Sue won when she was older than anyone in the league. To watch Sue Bird play point guard is a privilege. She had the ability to set her teammates up all game and then hit the killer 3 at that right time. She is an icon for not only female athletes but all athletes.
#1 - Ken Griffey, Jr, Mariners
Key Accomplishments: MLB HOF, 10x All-Stars, 1997 AL MVP, 10x Gold Gloves, 7x Silver Sluggers, 4x AL HR leader
There was no other choice, right? The greatest baseball player of all time and the coolest player in Seattle sports history. There was nothing like watching Ken Griffey, Jr. play baseball. No other athlete in Seattle’s history has drawn crowds like Griffey. While Bird, Ichiro, Payton, Kemp and the L.O.B. were draws, Griffey was THE draw. Travel to any baseball stadium around the country and you will find a fan who likes baseball because of Junior. These aren’t people who are from Seattle; they simply loved The Kid.
He had his face on Frosted Flakes, his own candy bar, his own rap song, and his own style that baseball had never seen before. And he performed. Man, did he perform on the field. Ten Gold Gloves. Three seasons leading the league in WAR. Seven seasons with 40 or more home runs. Eight seasons batting over .300. In a league full of power hitters who hit .220, Griffey did it all. He hit for average and power. He had speed and was the best in the league patrolling center field. Every Seattle fan knows he is #24, but they also recognize he is #1.
Among everything else, Felix has a Perfect Game, too!
I love lists!
Pretty awesome list y'all! So great to read latsgoooooooSeaaaaaaaattle!