SKIING

The Journey Of The Seattle Mariners

Just as most cities who wanted to have a major league baseball team, Seattle has to wait for a while. Their first attempt to have a franchise dates back in the mid 1960s. The hopes that the Cleveland Indians would move to Seattle did not push through. William Daley has sold the Indians. He then led a movement to get a franchise for Seattle.

They won the bid and established the Seattle Pilots. The team was short lived. Financial issues led to the selling of the team. After that, the owner moved it to Milwaukee and the team became the Brewers. Seattle filed a case against the American League because of breaching their contract. In order to settle everything, the league offered to establish a new franchise in Seattle. The Seattle Mariners were set to start play in 1977.

When the team began to play, fans were very excited. Their first game was sold-out. However, the team struggled. They lost their first game to the California Angels. They did not have any impressive performances during the ensuing games or the following years. A businessman named George Agyros bought the team.

The change of ownership did not make a significant difference in terms of their performance. Even their promising lineup did not lead the team to its winning season. They actually had quite a few notable names in the baseball history. One of them was Alvin Davis. He was the American league Rookie of the Year in 1984. Another was future Baseball Hall of Famer, Gaylord Perry. They also had Harold Reynolds who made the All Star twice and won the Gold Glove thrice. Ownership changed in 1988 again. A group headed by Jeff Smulyan bought the team.

In 1991, the team had its very first winning season. However, they were still among the bottom teams in their division. This led to the firing of manager, Jim Lefebvre. The team also fired his replacement, Jim Plummer in 1992.

In 1992, ownership changed again. This time, a group headed by Hiroshi Yamauchi purchased the team. This caused turmoil because baseball officials are not happy with the fact that a non-American will have controlling ownership over the team. However, they reached an agreement, which entails that an American partner will take chairmanship of the team.

Lou Pinella managed the Seattle Mariners from 1993 to 2002. He led his team to three division titles. During his time, he also bagged two Manager of the Year awards from the American League.

It was also during his era when the team has to play the most games on the road because of speculations that their home venue is no longer safe. They had a rough start but were able to turn their games around. They won nine out of ten games after having a 2-8 record. Their games on the road made their relationship as a team stronger as well.

The team became a strong team after winning their first division title. However, they were not able to win any American League pennant. Thus, they are still among the four teams who have never appeared in the World Series.

About the Author

Rick Grantham is an expert on sports equipment, specially on
Seattle Mariners Merchandise
for more information on
Major League Baseball Team Stores
, visit BooYah Village.

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