On August 8, 2026, the Seattle Mariners unveiled their official list of the 50 greatest players in franchise history at T-Mobile Park — and Andrés Muñoz 🇲🇽 is on it. The 27-year-old closer from Sonora now shares that distinction with Ken Griffey Jr., Ichiro and Félix Hernández, becoming one of just eight active roster players to receive the honor.
The numbers that put him there: 97 career saves, a 2.63 ERA and more than 400 strikeouts across six seasons in Seattle.
How ‘El Plebe’ Became Part of Mariners History
Muñoz arrived in Seattle in August 2020 as one piece of a seven-player trade with the San Diego Padres. It wasn’t exactly a star-is-born entrance — he was coming off Tommy John surgery that had wiped out nearly a full season. The Mariners bet on him anyway.
What followed was one of the more complete development stories this organization has produced. Working with Seattle’s coaching staff, Muñoz built an arsenal that now ranks him among the toughest closers in the league. His 2025 season was the clearest proof: 38 saves with a 1.73 ERA in 62.1 innings — the first Mariner to clear 30 saves in a season since Edwin Díaz saved 57 back in 2018.
The 2026 season has been bumpier — 19 saves in 25 opportunities with a 3.98 ERA through August 7 — but that didn’t factor into the franchise’s decision. This list isn’t about what you’ve done lately. It’s about what you’ve left behind. And Muñoz has already left enough.
What Making the List Actually Means
The 50 Seasons Celebration Night on August 8 at T-Mobile Park was not a small event. The organization brought dozens of former players onto the field — Griffey Jr., Ichiro, Randy Johnson, Félix Hernández — to reveal the list live. It’s the kind of ceremony a franchise holds exactly once.
Of the eight active 2026 roster players included, Muñoz is the only closer. The others are Julio Rodríguez, Cal Raleigh, Logan Gilbert, George Kirby, J.P. Crawford, Bryan Woo and Luis Castillo — who had been traded to the White Sox days before the event but remained on the list. Getting in as an active reliever, not a retired legend, says something about the weight he’s built up in Seattle.
The recognition also arrives while Muñoz is still under team control: the Mariners hold contract options on him for $8 million in 2027 and $10 million in 2028. The history is still being written.
What Statcast Says
The traditional stats tell one story. Baseball Savant tells another — and it’s just as compelling. In 2026, Muñoz ranks at the 98th percentile in Chase Rate, meaning hitters almost never chase his pitches out of the zone. When they do swing at those pitches? He’s at the 100th percentile in Whiff Rate — hitters miss more often than virtually anyone in the majors. That’s not a hot streak. That’s the signature of an elite closer.
- xwOBA: 80th percentile — hitters should be making far less contact than it looks
- Chase Rate: 98th percentile — almost no one bites on his bad pitches
- Whiff Rate: 100th percentile — when they do swing, they miss. Full stop.
- Exit Velocity: 61st percentile — moderate contact when it happens
- Hard Hit %: 20th percentile — very little loud contact allowed
The numbers, not the opinions, are what ultimately validate greatness. Muñoz’s are doing exactly that.
