MLB history: Forgotten stars of the current AL West teams

John Olerud, Mariners

According to legend, apparently incorrect, John Olerud was so obscure he was forgotten by Rickey Henderson after he played with him on the Mets, and then, was introduced to him again after Henderson was signed by the Mariners.

The story had to do with Olerud wearing a batting helmet while playing the field, which had been recommended to him after he suffered from a brain aneurism when he was a college player. Henderson allegedly didn’t recognize him as a former teammate despite the helmet.

Olerud was, in fact, a very, very good player, but one likely floating around only vaguely in the average fan’s consciousness: “Which team did he play for – the Mets, the Jays…?” In fact, Olerud played for five teams in his 17-year career and was a significant part of the wildly successful 2001 Seattle Mariners.

That team won an insane 116 games. For his part, Olerud contributed 95 RBI, 32 doubles, and a .302 average to that effort, scoring 91 runs. In MLB history, the Mariners’ 116 wins is at the top of the heap with the 1906 Cubs. (We’ll skip over the team’s performance in the playoffs in ’01.)

As a fielder, Olerud was right on the league average for first basemen that season — .993. For his career he was two points higher than the league average.

The tall, strong first baseman stayed in the Pacific Northwest for four-plus seasons.  In his four, full M’s seasons, 2001-’03, he hit .289, driving in 383 runs. In that stretch he also won three Gold Gloves and was an All-Star once.

How do you win the Gold Glove three times in four years while driving in nearly 400 runs, but make the All-Star team only once? Play for the Mariners.