Most memorable moments from 25 years at T-Mobile Park
Wrangling over stadium financing would continue on for years, but the dream of a new outdoor ballpark in Seattle finally felt real on March 8, 1997, when Ken Griffey Jr. flew in from spring training in Arizona and dug in for the first time at the site of the Mariners’ future home.
Shovel in hand, Griffey broke ground on the new stadium site before a crowd of some 8,000 on a chilly, windy Seattle day.
“Today, we begin a high that’s going to last for the lives of all of us here,” Sen. Slade Gorton said.
Ken Griffey, Jr. drops his bat and watches the last home run he will ever hit at the Kingdome sail away into the stands. His first up in the last game – first inning. Mariners beat the Texas Rangers 5 – 2 in their last game in the dome.
The ballpark opened on July 15, 1999, at a cost of $517 million, and it remains one of Major League Baseball’s best venues. Here are 10 top moments from the Mariners’ 25 years at T-Mobile Park:
10. ‘Opening the Safe’ (July 15, 1999)
“Like Seattle, Safeco Field is subtle, not the first or best of baseball’s new generation of boutique stadiums, but a special place of sights and sounds, where your ability to enjoy can overcome life’s miseries, including the Mariner bullpen.” – Blaine Newnham, Seattle Times
Dave Niehuas threw out the ceremonial first pitch and Jamie Moyer threw out the game’s first pitch when the Mariners hosted the San Diego Padres for the inaugural game at then-Safeco Field.
It was the first outdoor MLB game played in Seattle since the Pilots hosted the Oakland A’s at Sicks Stadium on Oct. 2, 1969.
The retractable roof remained open and a crowd of 44,607 was treated to a Moyer gem (eight innings, one run, nine strikeouts) only to watch in agony as Jose Mesa walked four batters in the ninth inning to blow the game in the Mariners’ 3-2 loss.
9. Iwakuma’s no-hitter (Aug. 12, 2015)
“In the big picture, it might not amount to anything more lasting than the dampness from a Gatorade shower. But for a ballclub yearning for hope amid the gloom, Hisashi Iwakuma’s no-hitter Wednesday deserves to be savored. … The Safeco Field crowd of 25,661 stood and roared. The team poured from the dugout, Felix Hernandez wearing his Kuma Bear Cap, and engulfed Iwakuma in a human scrum.” – Larry Stone, Seattle Times
Hisashi Iwakuma threw the fifth no-hitter in Mariners history in a 3-0 victory over the Baltimore Orioles, striking out seven with three walks on 116 pitches.
During a rocky, injury-riddled season, the 34-year-old Iwakuma became just the second Japanese pitcher to throw an MLB no-hitter after Hideo Nomo in 2001.
“When I was young, when I first signed, I said to myself, ‘One day it would be nice to throw a no-hitter,’ ” Iwakuma said. “Today I’m very happy I accomplished it, but it was just taking one hitter at a time that got this to become true.”
Most underappreciated pitcher in Mariners history? Among pitchers with 100 career starts for the Mariners, Iwakuma is tied for the best ERA (3.42) in club history with Felix Hernandez, Randy Johnson and James Paxton. Iwakuma’s 1.14 WHIP (walks plus hits per inning pitched) ranks second behind only Logan Gilbert (1.09).
8. Guillen’s guile (Oct. 6, 2000)
“There’s a bunt up the first base line … the Mariners are on their way to the American League Championship! A beautiful bunt by Carlos Guillen. The Mariners sweep the Chicago White Sox! MY, OH MY! I DON’T BELIEVE IT!” – Dave Niehaus on M’s broadcast
In his first appearance of the AL Division Series, rookie Carlos Guillen was called on to pinch hit with one out in the bottom of the ninth inning, the score tied at 1-1 and the winning run at third base.
Stan Javier executed a sacrifice bunt to move to third base Rickey Henderson, who was pinch running after John Olerud led off the ninth with a line-drive single that hit White Sox reliever Kelly Wunsch in the chest.
Manager Lou Piniella called for another bunt when Guillen was called on to pinch hit. Guillen, instead, took a mighty hack the first pitch he saw from White Sox closer Keith Foulke – and whiffed.
On the second pitch, Guillen pulled a hard bunt past a diving first baseman Frank Thomas, and Henderson scored easily as the Mariners completed a three-game series sweep of the White Sox, who had led the AL with 95 wins during the regular season.
“This park has been open for a year and a half now,” Mariners right fielder Jay Buhner said. “This christens it. We’ve got to be building tradition here.”
7. Junior’s old-time religion (June 19, 2009)
“The fans hoping to catch some of the old-time religion right there baby with Junior stepping up to the plate. Here comes the stretch and the pitch to Junior on the way. Swing and a fly ball to deep right-center field. That baby is going to … Fly Away! The old-time religion lives! Junior does it! A two-run home run and we are tied at 3-3. My, Oh My!” – Dave Niehaus on M’s broadcast
Called on to pinch hit with a runner on third and two outs in the eighth inning, Ken Griffey Jr. belted a two-run homer on the first pitch he saw from Diamondbacks reliever Tony Pena, trying the score at 3-3.
It was career home run No. 618 for the 39-year-old Griffey, who was greeted by teammates in the dugout and then returned to the top step to tip his helmet for a curtail call from the crowd of 27,319.
A few batters later, Rob Johnson’s RBI triple gave the Mariners the lead in an eventual 4-3 victory.
6. 2001 All-Star game (July 10, 2001)
“The mood was so good at the All-Star Game, the Safeco Field sellout crowd even roared for Alex Rodriguez.” – Bob Finnigan, Seattle Times
All Star Game at Safeco Field, Tuesday, July 10, 2001.
Seattle was the epicenter of baseball in the summer of 2001, with the Mariners on their march to 116 wins and the MLB All-Star Game arriving at Safeco Field.
Eight Mariners made the AL All-Star team – with four starters – and Lou Piniella was part of the AL coaching staff, giving the game a distinct Seattle flavor.
Ichiro had the game’s first hit off Randy Johnson, outracing the former Mariners ace to first base on an infield single. Ichiro promptly stole second.
Freddy Garcia, in his first All-Star Game, pitched a 1-2-3 third inning and earned the victory when Cal Ripken homered in the bottom of the third to put the AL ahead for good in an eventual 4-1 victory over the NL.
The 40-year-old Ripken, in his farewell tour, was named the game’s MVP.
At one point, Bret Boone, Mike Cameron, John Olerud and Edgar Martinez were hitting 4-5-6-7 in the AL lineup, and the Mariners’ Kazuhiro Sasaki pitched a perfect ninth to earn the save.
5. Julio’s HR derby (July 10, 2023)
“For about 10 glorious minutes, Rodriguez owned T-Mobile Park like few ever have. If last year’s breakout show at Dodger Stadium had been epic, what he did in the first round Monday requires a new adjective to connote an athlete rising to the moment.” – Larry Stone, Seattle Times
Julio Rodriguez didn’t win the 2023 MLB Home Run Derby. It didn’t matter.
J-Rod mesmerized the home fans with 41 home runs in his first-round matchup against the Mets’ Pete Alonso, a record for any round in The Derby, as a crowd of 46,952 chanted his name.
“The whole crowd was in it,” Rodriguez said. “My whole goal, once I stepped on the field, was to give a show to the crowd. Just give them something they would enjoy. I hope they enjoyed my performance out there.”
Rodriguez was made for the Home Run Derby, as he showed as a rookie in 2022 when he launched 81 homers at Dodger Stadium.
4. The Hit King (Oct. 1, 2004)
“As if a volcano erupting in the neighborhood was not enough, nor the moon peeking for a time through the gap in the right-field stands, there was Ichiro. Rising to the occasion and making it a one-and-only event, Ichiro made the faithful forget a forgettable Mariners season – with an all-time record. Not just any record, but one of the baseball’s oldest and, if overlooked, purest.” – Bob Finnigan, Seattle Times
As George Sisler’s daughter watched from the front row, Ichiro slapped a third-inning single up the middle off Rangers right-hander Ryan Drese for his 258th hit of the season, breaking Sisler’s 84-year-old MLB record.
“I felt a big relief, I felt something lift off my shoulders,” Ichiro said. “To have the fans and the team involved, made it very exciting for me, a special moment, the highlight of my career.”
He would finish the 2004 season with 262 hits. In the two decades since, no one has come close to matching it.
3. Raleigh ends drought (Sept. 30, 2022)
“A drive deep to right field … down the line … the Mariners win this game 2-1. The dream lives! They’re going to the playoffs. The drought is over! Cal Raleigh! Wow!” – Dave Sims on M’s broadcast
Cal Raleigh coming through in the clutch has become a theme for the Mariners the past few seasons, but it will be hard for him to top the walkoff home run he hit against Oakland’s Domingo Acevedo that clinched the franchise’s first playoff berth in 21 years.
It was a majestic blast off the Hit It Here Cafe windows in right field, and Raleigh’s reaction rounding second base – hands on his head in disbelief – is one of the iconic images in franchise history.
“The moment I knew it was fair, I just looked at the dugout and everyone was jumping up and down,” Raleigh said. “It’s not really a pressure moment. We’re having fun and playing baseball. That’s the way you have to look at it.”
2. A tasteful toast (Sept. 19, 2001)
“The Mariners have given us six months of joy and some of the best baseball ever played. For real baseball fans, for Seattle, it is something to savor, and celebrate, even if it’s better right now that you don’t.” – Blaine Newnham, Seattle Times
Eight days after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, the Mariners clinched their third American League West title with a 5-0 victory over the Angels, and then held a respectful and thoughtful celebration on the field.
Players kneeled on the infield for a moment of silence. Mark McLemore waved an American flag on the mound, prompting a flag-waving parade around the diamond, and Lou Piniella tipped his cap before a crowd of 45,459.
“This was the high point of my career, definitely my highest moment in baseball,” McLemore said. “And it was right. After what our country has gone through, what many of our people have gone through, this was tasteful and respectful.”
Back home two weeks later, the Mariners would win their record 116th game with a 1-0 victory over the Rangers in the penultimate game of the regular season.
1. Perfection (Aug. 15, 2012)
“One strike away from baseball history. Hernandez looks in. The windup and the pitch … strike three called! Felix Hernandez pumps his arms in the air! Felix has just thrown the first perfect game in Seattle Mariners history!” – Rick Rizzs on M’s broadcast
Felix Hernandez froze Sean Rodriguez with a devastating changeup for strike three, then twirled on the mound in a moment frozen in time – his right leg lifted and both arms stretched skyward. (Would make for a perfect pose for a statue outside T-Mobile Park, wouldn’t it?)
Felix retired all 27 batters he faced in a 1-0 victory over the Rays for the 23rd perfect game in MLB history and the first in M’s history.
“It’s always on my mind in every game, ‘I need to throw a perfect game,’” Hernandez said. “Today it happened, and it’s something special. Like I said before, I don’t have any words to explain this. This is pretty amazing.”