Mariners Moose Tracks, 1/22/19: Edgar, Edgar, and 22 is 11 x 2 which means, you guessed it, Edgar Martinez

A surprisingly busy holiday Monday has provided a full helping of news, but today is, of course, the conclusion of a decade of disappointment and renewed hope. We will learn this afternoon if Edgar Martinez has been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

Despite the building tension, I must admit it’s felt a bit hard to fully throw myself into tracking the voting this year, but as it stands, the odds are excellent for Edgar’s induction. To help get you in the mood, and educated, here are some heavily Edgar-tinged links!

In Mariners news...

• If you were in attendance for Edgar’s number retirement ceremony, you saw this heartstring-tugging homage to Edgar. It takes a lot at this point to make the ‘95 nostalgia hit fully still, and yet, this hits every note. Watch it, then watch it again.

• Once you’re done, take a read through our #EdgarHOF collection. This was the passion project of our Managing Editor, Kate Preusser, for whom Edgar IS Mariners baseball. Rediscover stories you know, and uncover those you do not.

• Lest you get TOO stressed out, the good news is that things look extremely encouraging for Edgar:

• Regardless of the outcome, Edgar’s wife, Holli Martinez, is thankful.

• In 2019 Mariners news, Seattle acquired 2B prospect Shed Long from the Yankees (technically) in exchange for OF prospect Josh Stowers. Long had been a Top-8 prospect for the Reds that was exchanged for RHP Sonny Gray. To make a 40-man spot, the Mariners DFA’d INF/RHP Kaleb Cowart.
• That move inspired mostly positive reactions for the Mariners, as Long seems universally ranked more highly than Stowers by evaluators.

• Jerry Dipoto stated he expects to see Long work at multiple positions in Spring Training and potentially beyond, including 3B and in the outfield, while retaining 2B as his primary position.
• Long has a unique and curious profile in many ways, including his impressively diverse spray chart.

• Baseball Savant updated their leaderboards to include Catcher Pop Time. Current M’s starter Omar Narvaez clocks in at 23rd, four spots behind former backstop Mike Zunino.

Around the league...

• Former Mariners reliever Danny Farquhar is signing a minor league deal with the Yankees after being declared fully healthy from his life-threatening brain hemorrhage last season with the White Sox.
• The entirety of the Sonny Gray deal brought back an extra pick for the Yankees. (And Josh Stowers. We will miss you, Clarence.)

• Rick Ankiel is launching a comeback campaign.

• A pair of nearly guaranteed Hall of Famers share a bond - a pitch that is now common, but has scarcely been mastered better than they did.

• Unfortunately, Mariano Rivera taught Roy Halladay a bit too well for his teammates’ liking.

• The Orioles look set for another grim season.

• Josh Reddick had a Spider-Man-themed wedding.
• Our sister-site (okay, we’re a blog network, but they’re particularly pleasant) Building The Dam covers all things Oregon State and has begun previewing the OSU Baseball squad.
• A Korean baseball team made an interesting move at the executive level, hiring a female former football (soccer) referee to be their new general manager.

John’s pick...

• Edgar. Please pick Edgar.