IRON MOUNTAIN – Larry Poncino watched this year’s National Baseball Hall of Famers perform from the best seat in the house.

Poncino spent 18 years as a Major League Baseball umpire. His career spanned that of pitching greats Pedro Martinez, Randy Johnson and John Smoltz along with Houston Astros star Craig Biggio.

All four entered the Cooperstown shrine during last month’s ceremony.

Biggio, regarded as the greatest all-around player in Houston Astros history, recorded his 3,000th hit with Poncino behind the plate. Biggo reached that milestone on June 28, 2007, collecting five hits against Colorado in Houston.

“I have a picture in my office from that game,” said Poncino, who summers at Loretto’s Lake Louise with his wife, JoAnn (Thibert). “He certainly deserved to be in the hall of fame. Just a phenomenal kid.”

Poncino recalls leaving games and seeing Biggio and future Hall of Famer Jeff Bagwell still working out.

“Two of the classiest guys in the game,” Poncino said.

Poncino was in Atlanta on May 18, 2004, when a 40-year-old Randy Johnson pitched for the Arizona Diamondbacks. That one turned out to be a perfect game, an MLB record for the oldest pitcher.

Poncino, at third base, recalls talking to crew chief and second-base umpire Gerry Davis during a break in the action. Greg Gibson (plate) and Bruce Dreckman (first base) comprised that crew.

“We knew there was no way that anybody was going to hit him,” Poncino said of a late-inning conversation. “It was like a man against boys, and the Braves had a good team.”

Johnson threw 117 pitches in that game, with the last one hitting 98 mph. The five-time Cy Young winner whiffed 13 Braves.

“It was like a surreal experience,” Atlanta’s Chipper Jones said at the time. “When you wake up, you think, no, he couldn’t have thrown a perfect game against us. You think it had to be a dream.”

Stated Arizona manager Bob Brenly, “This is one of those nights where a superior athlete was on the top of his game,”

Johnson holds the MLB southpaw record for strikeouts at 4,875. That’s second overall to

Nolan Ryan.

The towering lefty thrived on “fear and intimidation.”

“Randy Johnson was frightening,” Poncino said. “You just hoped the catcher wasn’t crossed up with Johnson pitching.”

Poncino can remember more than one errant pitch that bounced and nailed him below the belt.

Smoltz, a Michigan native who had his greatest moments with the Atlanta Braves, was the “best competitor.”

“He was a gamer like the other guys,” Poncino said of Smoltz, the only pitcher in major league history to record both 200 wins and 150 saves.

Poncino describes Pedro Martinez as “Greg Maddux with a fastball,” referring to another Hall of Fame pitcher for the Braves.

“Pedro Martinez was impressive with really good stuff,” Poncino said.

Before Martinez’s hey days with the Boston Red Sox, the right-hander led the Montreal Expos. Poncino was working the bases on April 13, 1994, in Montreal.

Known as “Senior Plunk” or a headhunter back then, Martinez had a perfect game going until nailing Cincinnati’s Reggie Sanders in the eighth hitting. Most everybody in the park thought it was intentional.

“Martinez threw away a perfect game,” Poncino said. “It was plain as day.”

The eight-time All-Star lost his no-hitter in the ninth inning.

Poncino retired from baseball after a neck injury ended his career in 2007. He worked three league championship series, one division series and the 1996 All-Star Game. He had the plate in 1991 when Montreal’s Dennis Martinez tossed a perfect game against the Los Angeles Dodgers.