Seattle Mariners

The Seattle Mariners call the Pacific Northwest home as a Major League Baseball franchise competing in the American League West. Founded in 1977 after a lawsuit forced the city to secure a new team following the Pilots' departure, the club played its first game on April 6 of that year against the California Angels. For their first two decades, the team called the Kingdome home before moving to T-Mobile Park in July 1999. The stadium sits in the SoDo neighborhood and holds 47,929 fans while offering views of Puget Sound.

Early years proved difficult for the expansion club, which lost 100 games in its debut season and did not post a winning record until 1991. A dramatic turnaround occurred in August 1995 when the Mariners rallied from a 13-game deficit to force a one-game playoff against the Angels. They won that contest 9-1 and then defeated the New York Yankees in the ALDS thanks to Edgar Martínez's walk-off double in Game 5.

The 2001 season marked the franchise peak with a record-tying 116 wins. Ichiro Suzuki joined the roster that year and swept Rookie of the Year and MVP awards. Despite this success, the team fell short in the ALCS against the Yankees. Following this era, the Mariners endured a 20-year playoff drought including 14 losing seasons before returning to the postseason in 2022. [bearbeiten]

The franchise was born from legal action. After the Seattle Pilots moved to Milwaukee following the 1969 season, the city and county sued Major League Baseball, leading to an expansion franchise awarded for 1977. The team's first game was April 6, 1977, a 7-0 loss to the California Angels. Early years were tough: the Mariners lost 100 games in their inaugural season and wouldn't have a winning record until 1991.

The franchise turned a corner in 1995. Trailing the Angels by 13 games in August, the Mariners went on a furious run, forcing a one-game playoff for the AL West title. They beat the Angels 9-1, then stunned the Yankees in the ALDS. Edgar Martínez's double in the 11th inning of Game 5 scored Ken Griffey Jr. and sent the Kingdome into a frenzy. That series drew record crowds and is often credited with saving baseball in Seattle, leading to public funding for a new ballpark.

The 2001 season was the pinnacle. After losing Alex Rodriguez to free agency, the Mariners signed Ichiro Suzuki, who became the first Japanese position player in MLB. The team won 116 games, tying the 1906 Cubs for the most wins ever. Ichiro won both Rookie of the Year and MVP, and the Mariners swept through the ALDS before falling to the Yankees in the ALCS. That would be the team's last playoff appearance until 2022, a 20-year drought that included 14 losing seasons.

In 2022, the Mariners broke the drought with a Wild Card berth, beating the Blue Jays in a dramatic two-game sweep. The next year, they fell just short of the playoffs. But 2025 marked a resurgence: behind a dominant pitching staff and a breakout season from Julio Rodríguez, the team won the AL West for the first time since 2001. The Mariners have never been to the World Series, the longest active drought in MLB. [bearbeiten]