Martinez's number retirement is a big honor for the Mariner icon

I’m going to go off my usual combat sports path in this week’s column and focus on a recent development in baseball, specifically with the Seattle Mariners.

Like any year, the Mariners’ 2017 season comes with a lot of expectations and questions. What new faces will don a Mariner’s jersey and cap? How will the team’s bullpen play?

But one of the guaranteed bright spots for fans and the team will come in August when the Mariners officially retire franchise mainstay Edgar Martinez’s No. 11 jersey. The uniform will be in good company and hang alongside Ken Griffey Jr.’s No. 24, which Seattle retir...