Would Griffey, A-Rod, Johnson have fit this team?

CLEVELAND — Would the Mariners have done what they did in 2001 with Randy Johnson, Ken Griffey Jr. and Alex Rodriguez?

One might as well ask, "How many superstars can you fit on the head of a pin?"

The first instinct is to say, "What team wouldn't be as good, if not greatly improved, with three players ticketed for the Hall of Fame?"

But in addition to being three magnificent talents on the field, Johnson, Griffey and Rodriguez all brought massive personalities into the clubhouse.

"You mean egos," Jay Buhner said, getting to the point. "Yeah, they had ego. But in those years, we fed off ego."

No Seattle group may ever be tighter than that of 1995, when the stunning September forged a fiery family, with the likes of Chris Bosio, Tino Martinez and Mike Blowers pulling everyone into the brotherhood.

This team is different.

"I think the personalities of those three (Johnson, Griffey and Rodriguez) would have fit, in a way," Buhner said. "The egos would have been big, but this year, if we had some egos in the clubhouse, I think they would have kept them in check. It was going so good, no one would want to spoil it."

The 2001 Mariners are unified by mutual respect for what each player brings to the team, veterans who realize their success is built on interlocking reliance rather than star power.

"With those guys — Unit, Junior, Alex — we'd have a really great team," said Edgar Martinez, along with Buhner one of the few left who played with that trio. "Of course, it would be impossible because many of the good players we have now we got for those guys — like Freddy (Garcia), Cammy (Mike Cameron), who are coming into their own as stars."

That is the practical viewpoint, of course. If the mentality of those three could be made to fit on the 2001 club, would the money have fit?

"The simple answer is no way," Buhner said. "If we had a payroll of $120 million, maybe. But maybe not, even at that figure."

But the point is not money, it's personalities.

If the money had somehow been there, would this team have won 116 games with Johnson, Griffey and Rodriguez?

"When you win, personalities fit," Martinez said. "You hear people talk about a winning team having good chemistry. To me, circumstances make chemistry, not chemistry making circumstances.

"If a guy you aren't close to gets 10 wins or hits 20 homers, you start thinking, 'Hey, I think I like you.' "

"I don't think we'd have done as well, not with all three," Buhner said. "Most of all, we wouldn't have had the payroll to go around them.

"But I know what you're talking about. That's the beauty of hypothetical situations, what-ifs. We can chew on them forever.

"To ask if the team would have been better on the field, that's a no-brainer. Yes. But that's not the way it works. To ask if we'd have done as well, that's different."

Buhner pointed out that the majority of the current club never played with Johnson or Griffey. Amazingly, only seven members of the current team were around Johnson, who could be as intimidating in the clubhouse as on the mound. Only a dozen were teammates of Griffey, who had such a huge effect on the mood of the team.

"Each of those guys brought their own thing to the team," Buhner said.

"Randy was our intimidator. I don't care what anyone says, I'd want him on the mound in a big game.

"Junior was the best outfielder in baseball, probably the most talented player in the game. Alex was the best infielder. And if Junior wasn't the most talented, then Alex was. And he went all-out all the time."

The outfielder noted that the 2001 Mariners are a happy club, and the big thing is those guys are all happy where they are.

Like everyone who has been involved with Seattle baseball from thin to thick, Buhner wonders.

"I don't know if those guys would have fit in the style of game we played this year," he said. "It was really an NL-type team, grind it out. They were all such big men, doing big things.

"This was a great year, but we had great years with those guys, too."

In short, like Edgar and Norm Charlton, Buhner would take them all back in the time it takes to line a single.

Johnson and Rodriguez aren't coming back, gone to be fixtures in the Southwest.

But Griffey?

"Now Junior's the biggest bargain in baseball," Buhner said. "If Cincinnati ever wanted to let him go, I know the only place he'd come (is) back to the Mariners. Hey, this is home, too.

"Wouldn't that be sweet this winter if Pat (GM Pat Gillick) could do that? What a message to everyone that we're willing to do whatever it takes to stay on top."

Bob Finnigan can be reached at 206-464-8276 or bfinnigan@seattletimes.com.