Mariners Hall Of Fame Begins With Alvin Davis

The Seattle Mariners have 20 years of history to highlight, so the team created a Hall of Fame Wednesday.

Former first baseman and 1984 rookie of the year, Alvin Davis, will be the first inductee at Saturday’s game against the Los Angeles Dodgers.

“As this franchise enters its third decade of baseball, the time has come to recognize and honor the great players and people who have made a positive contribution to Mariners baseball and to the game of baseball in the Pacific Northwest,” team chairman and chief executive officer John Ellis said.

Davis played eight seasons with the Mariners and was voted the team’s most valuable player three times.

At the Kingdome, a Hall of Fame display will be located in the Royal Brougham Museum on the arena level inside Gate B. At the new ballpark, the Hall of Fame will be permanently displayed in its own museum-like area.

Junior domed

Ken Griffey Jr.’s home run Tuesday at Skydome gave him 165 in domed stadiums, the second most in baseball history. For records purposes, Skydome is always closed.

Former Minnesota Twins first baseman Kent Hrbek is the leader with 167 indoor long balls. Jay Buhner is fifth with 124. Alvin Davis is ninth with 106.

Walker to skip out on Johnson

Don’t expect to see Larry Walker in the lineup when the Colorado Rockies face Randy Johnson.

Walker, among the major league leaders in several batting categories, intends to sit out Friday night when the Rockies face the Seattle Mariners ace at the Kingdome. It will be the second interleague game between the teams.

Does Walker fear a lefty vs. lefty matchup with Johnson?

“Is there a left-handed hitter, or a right-handed one, for that matter, that doesn’t?” Walker said. “I’m going to skip that one.”

Walker, hitting .410 with 18 home runs and 53 RBIs, has seen the 6-foot-10 Johnson up close. Johnson leads the majors with 120 strikeouts in only 92 innings.

“I faced Randy one time in spring training and he almost killed me,” Walker said.

Walker and Johnson were both in West Palm Beach, Fla., in the minor league camp and trying to make Montreal’s Double-A team in 1987. Johnson threw an 0-2 slider under Walker’s nose.

“I swung at it before the pitch was released from his hand,” Walker said.

“I ran to the dugout and was halfway there before the pitch got to the plate.”

Notes

If the Mariners were in the National League East, they’d be in fifth place. … Seattle is better playing day games (15-6) than night (19-23). … Brent Gates went 2 for 4 Wednesday and has now hit in seven straight starts. … On the six-game road trip, Griffey was 5 for 21 with one home run.

Coming up

Derek Lowe (1-1, 4.30) is set to face Colorado’s Darren Holmes (2-1, 3.24) at 7:05 on Fox Sports Northwest.

The games with Los Angeles on Saturday and Sunday are sold out. Saturday at 1:05 p.m., Bob Wolcott (2-4, 5.63) faces Ramon Martinez (6-3, 3.08). Sunday at 1:35 p.m., Jamie Moyer (5-2, 4.53) takes the mound for the Mariners. Los Angeles sends Ismael Valdes (3-7).

Gates will open at 11:05 a.m. Sunday, a half hour earlier than normal, to accommodate the large crowd.