Edgar Martinez for Christmas

MOSES LAKE — Bernice Russell is getting a Christmas gift early.

She is a fan of former Mariner Edgar Martinez. Posters of him still hang from the walls of her office at Lake Bowl, a business she and her late husband George started in the 1950s.

This Saturday Bernice gets to meet Mr. Mariner in person.

Her grandson, Troy Duzon, arranged for Martinez to meet fans at Papa’s Sports Lounge and Casino from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. on Saturday.

“As long as I can remember, she has always been a huge Mariner fan. She’s always liked Edgar,” he said. “My grandmother is a big fan ... she might be the biggest fan. That’s one of the best parts of having him over, is meeting her.”

The anticipation goes both ways.

“That’s a great compliment,” Martinez told the Columbia Basin Herald. “I am looking forward to meeting her and spending time with her family.”

The public is invited to meet Martinez on Saturday, where he will be available to sign autographs, said Duzon. Martinez will be in the family portion of Papa’s.

“We definitely want Dad to bring in his son,” said Duzon. “It is for the whole family.”

It is the first time Papa’s is hosting such a famous athlete.

Martinez spent his entire 18-year career in Major League Baseball with the Seattle Mariners. He played as a third baseman until a hamstring injury. He became the Mariner’s designated hitter and won two batting titles, once having a .356 batting average.

During his career, he had 2,200 hits, 1,200 walks, 500 doubles and 300 home runs. The Seattle Times wrote about his batting average, stating he had, “a .400-plus on-base percentage, numbers achieved by only Babe Ruth, Stan Musial, Rogers Hornsby, Ted Williams, Lou Gehrig and Barry Bonds.”

He was the man who hit “The Double,” a two-run double that is cited as saving baseball in Seattle. It allowed the Mariners to beat the Yankees in game four of the American League Division Series in 1995. The series was then tied 2-2. The Mariners lost game five.

During the playoff series his average was .561 and he made it to base 18 times in five games.

The game led to an increase in baseball fans and moved the state Legislature to approve building Safeco Field.

“A lot of people remember that double when they talk about my career, I’d say, yeah, that would define my career,” Martinez told a crowd at Safeco Field.

In 2004, he announced his retirement.

“To get someone of his caliber over is pretty cool,” said Duzon. “We’re real excited. I’ve had opportunities to meet him several times and he is a real great guy.”

This is Martinez’s first visit to Moses Lake.

“It’s an opportunity to meet a lot of people,” Martinez said. “I am looking forward to it.”

Martinez lives in Bellevue with his wife Holli and three children, but has another home in Ellensburg.

“I have a house there and visit that area a few times a year. It is a great area,” he said. “When it gets rainy and cloudy here, it is sunny there.”

His retirement from baseball didn’t stop Martinez from being busy. He is now the owner of several businesses, including the embroidery business Branded Solutions, and he was a founder of Plaza Bank in 2005 as the state’s first Hispanic bank. He is visiting Moses Lake as part of a promotion tour for his latest business — a Mezcal alcoholic beverage called El Zacatecano.

“(A group of friends) introduced it to me,” said Martinez. “It is a very high quality product. It is one of the best Mezcals in Mexico.”

El Zacatecano is a brand of Mezcal alcohol drinks, crafted near Huitzila in the state of Zacatecas in the Sierra Madre since 1910, according to the company. The three varieties of El Zacatecano are created from 100 percent Blue Weber Agave plants and all won awards for quality.

“In any place I use vodka, I replace it with this Mezcal and I like it better,” said Martinez. “It’s very, very, smooth. This is the good thing about this type of Mezcal.”

Martinez’s company is importing the drink to the United States.

“I have been busy with the new business,” he said. “It’s been great.”

In addition to the public appearance, Martinez is the guest of honor at a private dinner Saturday night. All the tickets are sold out to dinner, featuring cigars and El Zacatecano.

“I don’t smoke that much at all, but it sounds like a good occasion to smoke cigars and drink Mezcal with a lot of good people,” said Martinez.

Retirement has brought new challenges for Martinez, but baseball and the Mariners are still part of his life.

“I watched some (of the season), in the beginning quite a bit, ... but they had a rough year,” he said. “It is difficult to just sit and watch.”

When asked about his prediction for the Mariners in their next season, he is positive.

“I think they have a new direction now and the new manager has some good experience and that should help a lot.”