Seattle, WA
Seattle Mariners’ Playoff Return Could Jump-Start An Economic Resurgence
When the Seattle Mariners step to the plate in opposition to the Toronto Blue Jays on Friday evening, it’ll formally mark the tip of the longest lively postseason drought in main North American sports activities—21 seasons.
Fueled by an thrilling younger core of expertise, new enterprise initiatives and renewed fan enthusiasm, this could possibly be the second that revives the once-proud franchise, which has languished in baseball’s mediocre center for a lot of the previous twenty years.
The values of all sports activities franchises have skyrocketed over that span, however the Mariners’ 391% enhance is the sixth-slowest development fee amongst MLB golf equipment. In Forbes’ newest set of valuations, the Mariners, at $1.7 billion, rank sixteenth out of 30 groups within the league.
The three-game American League wild-card sequence will definitely be a monetary shot within the arm, similar to different anomaly sports activities occasions comparable to Saint Peters making a deep run within the NCAA basketball match. The official Mariners crew retailer announced it had utterly bought out of postseason merchandise inside two days of Cal Raleigh’s playoff-clinching, walk-off residence run final Friday evening. T-Cell Park is promoting tickets for watch events within the crew’s residence stadium this weekend, and tickets to potential future residence video games within the division sequence bought out inside minutes, in accordance with the crew.
Even earlier than the crew knew it might make the postseason, crew proprietor John Stanton instructed Forbes in July that he anticipated Seattle’s revenues to climb into the “prime third” of the league over the subsequent decade, an estimated bounce from $319 million final yr into the $400 million neighborhood, in accordance with Forbes information.
Successful ought to assist transfer the needle. Ilhan Geckil, managing director of the financial analysis agency Econ One, created a mannequin to measure the impact of on-field success on crew revenues, and by extension crew valuations. Controlling for variables comparable to market dimension, median family revenue within the surrounding space, stadium possession and different components, his analysis discovered that over the previous 12 years there was an simple correlation in MLB, even amongst powerhouse groups just like the New York Yankees.
“(The Yankees) have a giant fan base, their valuation is large, so their crew efficiency has restricted worth, however nonetheless,” Geckil says, “after we take a look at even for the Los Angeles Dodgers or Yankees, the crew efficiency affected income figures.”
However profitable in MLB doesn’t have as huge of an affect on the underside line because it used to. New streaming rights offers with Apple
AAPL
Ideally, shrewd enterprise practices and on-field success would go hand-in-hand. However that definitely hasn’t been the case in Seattle for the final 21 years.
“At sure occasions it feels just like the franchise is cursed,” says Jon Wells, a lifelong Mariners fan and the creator of Shipwrecked: A Peoples’ Historical past of the Seattle Mariners. “It type of makes you are feeling that approach, simply because the main focus hasn’t actually been on profitable for many of their historical past.”
Wells factors to the commerce of roster cornerstone Tino Martinez to chop prices in 1995, after the franchise made the playoffs for the primary time in its historical past, adopted by the trades of Ken Griffey Jr. in early 2000 and Alex Rodriguez that December as examples of the crew’s profits-above-all mindset.
Nonetheless, in 2001, the Mariners have been the epitome of success—a league-record 116 common season wins, a second consecutive journey to the American League Championship Sequence, and maybe the game’s most marketable participant, Ichiro Suzuki, who received each rookie of the yr and MVP honors.
That yr, Seattle pulled in $166 million in income, the third-most within the league, in accordance with Forbes information, and it ranked because the sixth-most-valuable franchise at $373 million. Enjoying in a newly constructed stadium, it led the league in attendance in 2001, and once more in 2002. Enterprise was booming.
But there continued to be an emphasis on controlling spending, resulting in the departure of a number of key gamers, plus supervisor Lou Piniella and basic supervisor Pat Gillick. Then-team chairman Howard Lincoln turned the general public goal of fan disapproval when he instructed the Seattle Occasions in 2002 that the franchise should prioritize its backside line.
“The objective of the Mariners is to not win a World Sequence,” Lincoln stated. “It’s to subject a aggressive crew yr after yr, to place itself able to win a World Sequence, and hope sooner or later that occurs.” He added: “We completely need to earn cash. No query, finish of story.”
The crew completed final in its division seven occasions from 2004 to 2013, resulting in a revolving door of managers, gamers and executives.
Possession modified palms in 2016, when a bunch led by Western Wi-fi Corp. founder John Stanton and retired Microsoft
MSFT
Wells sees the Forbes story on Griggs from July, wherein Stanton made his “prime third” remark, as continued proof of the franchise’s priorities.
“As a substitute of being enthusiastic about, wow, this crew is having some success, it’s been a very long time, the 14-game profitable streak, we’re involved about the best way to get extra income, work out methods to get folks to spend extra money on premium seating,” Wells says. “It’s probably not what followers wish to hear about; it’s probably not what you wish to hear your possession group discuss, like that is our concern, not attending to the World Sequence.”
The 2 pursuits don’t essentially need to compete. The crew received 90 video games final season for the primary time since 2003, and this yr, exhibiting a willingness to spend, the membership signed Julio Rodriguez—maybe the perfect rookie to put on a Mariners uniform since Ichiro—to a 12-year mega-deal value a minimum of $210 million. Ace pitcher Luis Castillo signed a five-year, $108 million extension. And now the crew has earned its long-awaited playoff bid.
A brand new postseason construction carried out this season provides one further wild-card qualifier in every league. Though it’s unfair to check, the third spot would have earned the Mariners a visit to the playoffs on 4 separate events over the course of the drought. Regardless, this yr’s crew completed three video games away from Tampa Bay to assert the AL’s second wild-card spot and a best-of-three sequence on the street in opposition to the Blue Jays. Complaints or not, Wells will probably be in Toronto for each recreation.
Within the clubhouse, gamers and coaches have been staying on message of their interactions with media, saying they aren’t content material with a playoff berth and as an alternative wish to make a deep run. In the event that they do, they may bust the franchise’s different doubtful MLB file: The Mariners are nonetheless the one present crew by no means to have performed within the World Sequence.
Seattle, WA
Sam Darnold and Justin Jefferson lead surging Vikings past Seahawks 27-24
SEATTLE (AP) — Sam Darnold connected with a well-covered Justin Jefferson with 3:51 left for his third TD pass of the game, and the Minnesota Vikings outlasted Geno Smith and the Seattle Seahawks 27-24 on Sunday to keep pace with Detroit for the top spot in the NFC.
After the Seahawks took the lead on Smith’s third TD pass, Darnold led a 30-second drive that was aided by a 15-yard facemask penalty. He stepped up in a collapsing pocket and launched a deep ball that Jefferson hauled in just short of the goal line with two defenders closing in.
Jefferson finished with 10 catches for 148 yards and two touchdowns as the Vikings (13-2) won their eighth straight. If they can beat Green Bay and Detroit to close out the season, they will earn the top seed in the conference and a first-round playoff bye.
Darnold threw for multiple touchdowns for the 11th time this season and more than 200 yards for the 10th. He finished 22 of 35 for 246 yards, helping Kevin O’Connell become the first Vikings coach with multiple 13-win seasons.
Not bad for a veteran who was signed to a one-year deal as a placeholder after the Vikings drafted J.J. McCarthy, who suffered a season-ending knee injury in the preseason.
Smith threw for 314 yards and his 4-yard TD pass to AJ Barner gave the Seahawks a 24-20 lead with 4:41 left, but he couldn’t rally Seattle (8-7) after Jefferson’s TD catch. Jason Myers missed a 60-yard field goal try after the two-minute warning, and Theo Jackson picked off Smith with 49 seconds left to seal it.
The Seahawks have lost two straight after a four-game winning streak and fell one game behind the Los Angeles Rams in the NFC West.
Smith also had scoring passes of 25 yards to DK Metcalf and 18 yards to Jaxon Smith-Njigba. He was also intercepted twice. Smith-Njigba had eight receptions for 95 yards.
Minnesota improved to 8-1 in one-score games this season.
The Vikings ran a 12-play opening drive, consuming 6:54 on the way to a 7-0 lead on Darnold’s 5-yard pass to Jordan Addison, who was open in the middle of the end zone for his third catch of the series.
Smith found Metcalf in man-to-man coverage with Stefon Gilmore early in the second quarter in the right corner of the end zone. It was Metcalf’s first TD reception since Week 7.
Darnold responded two drives later to make it 14-7 on a 14-yard pass to Jefferson over Tre Brown, who was left in single coverage on the All-Pro’s corner route.
Joshua Metellus pressured Smith on the first play of Seattle’s ensuing drive and Dallas Turner stepped in front of a pass to Noah Fant for an interception that set up Minnesota at the Seattle 31. The Vikings settled for Will Reichard’s 52-yard field goal after Boye Mafe sacked Darnold.
Smith drove the Seahawks 88 yards in 1:05 on five plays to cut the lead to 17-14 with 20 seconds left in the half. He found Smith-Njigba three times on the drive. The first, a 13-yard reception, put the second-year player over 1,000 yards receiving for the first time. The second, for 25 yards to the Vikings 18, drew a biceps flex from Smith-Njigba for the cheering crowd. And the third went for the score.
Receiving milestones
Metcalf shook off a long scoreless streak to catch his 47th career TD with the Seahawks. That helped him pass Hall of Fame receiver Steve Largent and move into sixth on the team’s career touchdown list.
Smith-Njigba became the 10th Seahawks receiver to record a 1,000-yard season.
Injuries
Vikings: S Harrison Smith (foot) was inactive, missing a game for the first time since 2022.
Seahawks: Placed LB Trevis Gipson (ankle) on injured reserve. … RB Kenneth Walker III left the game with an ankle injury.
Up next
Vikings: Host Green Bay next Sunday.
Seahawks: At Chicago on Thursday.
___
AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl
Seattle, WA
Here are the Remaining First Base Options For the Seattle Mariners This Offseason
The Seattle Mariners, in need of some help at first base this offseason, are at risk of being left out in the cold.
The M’s have Luke Raley already at first, but he could stand a right-handed hitting platoon partner. In the last few days, several options have come off the board as Christian Walker signed with the Houston Astros, Paul Goldschmidt signed with the New York Yankees, Josh Naylor was traded to the Arizona Diamondbacks and Carlos Santana signed with the Cleveland Guardians.
The Santana news was especially devastating, as it seemed like a reunion with him was essentially a lay-up earlier in the offseason.
Pete Alonso is still on the market, but the Mariners seem unwilling to meet the asking price for him. Thus, the options are dwindling rapidly, with Jeff Passan of ESPN taking stock of where the market is at right now:
Over the last 24 hours:
Christian Walker to Houston
Paul Goldschmidt to the New York Yankees
Josh Naylor to Arizona
Carlos Santana to Cleveland
1B still available in free agency: Pete Alonso, Anthony Rizzo, Josh Bell, Ty France. In trades: LaMonte Wade Jr. and Nathaniel Lowe.
Rizzo is out because the M’s don’t need a left-hander. Again, Alonso is likely out because of money. France, who was DFA’d by the Mariners in July, could be a possibility on the short side of the platoon with Raley. Justin Turner was omitted from that list, but he also remains a reunion possibility for Seattle.
In 48 games with the Mariners after a trade from the Toronto Blue Jays this past season, he hit .264 with five homers, 24 RBI and a .363 on-base percentage. He helped the M’s get to within one game of the playoffs.
For the season as a whole, he hit .259 with 11 homers.
Turner just finished the 16th year of his career with the Baltimore Orioles, New York Mets, Los Angeles Dodgers, Boston Red Sox, Blue Jays and Mariners. He’s a .285 lifetime hitter who helped the Dodgers win the World Series in 2020. He just turned 40 years old.
As for France, after being acquired by the Mariners during the COVID 2020 season, he was a firm part of the team’s rebuild, earning an All-Star appearance in 2022 and helping the team break the long playoff drought.
However, France slumped to a poor 2023 and also struggled in 2024 before being designated for assignment. He latched on with the Cincinnati Reds for the final 52 games of the season.
Lifetime, France is a .263 hitter. He hit .250 with the Mariners in 2023 but saw his power dissipate, hitting only 12 homers. He had just eight homers in 88 games for Seattle this year. He did hit five in Cincinnati. He’s still only 30 years old.
Continue to follow our Inside the Mariners coverage on social media by liking us on Facebook and by following Teren Kowatsch and Brady Farkas on “X” @Teren_Kowatsch and @wdevradiobrady. You can subscribe to the “Refuse to Lose” podcast by clicking HERE:
Seattle, WA
Six Different Golden Knights Score as Vegas Downs Seattle, 6-2 | Vegas Golden Knights
The Vegas Golden Knights (22-8-3) won their fifth straight game at home with a 6-2 victory against the Seattle Kraken (15-18-2) on Saturday night at T-Mobile Arena.
HOW IT WENT DOWN
Vince Dunn gave Seattle an early lead with a power-play goal 2:34 into the first period. Victor Olofsson found a wide-open Keegan Kolesar who scored the tying goal to make it 1-1 with 7:21 to play in the period. A little over a minute later, Brett Howden tacked on his 12th goal of the season to make it 2-1. Nicolas Hague scored his second goal of the season late in the frame to give Vegas a 3-1 lead heading into the second period. After a scoreless second period, William Karlsson tallied a goal 8:09 into the third period. Three minutes later, Noah Hanifin joined the goal party to increase the score to 5-1. Jaden Schwartz scored Seattle’s second power-play goal of the night, but Mark Stone sealed the 6-2 victory for Vegas with an empty-net goal. Ilya Samsonov stopped 21-of-23 shots.
TOP PERFORMERS
Keegan Kolesar: Kolesar tied his career-high goals (8G) with his game-tying goal in the first period. Kolesar also recorded a two-point night (1G, 1A) to have three multi-point games on the season.
Brett Howden: Howden scored the go-ahead goal in the first period increasing his career-high goal total to 12. With two points (1G, 1A) in the game, Howden has recorded back-to-back multi-point games and his fifth overall this season.
Victor Olofsson: With his assist in the first period, Olofsson has recorded seven points in seven games.
Mark Stone: Stone notched three points (1G, 2A) in the win. Stone has registered a point in 17-of-19 games played.
VGK STATS OF THE KNIGHT
Head Coach Bruce Cassidy tied Gerard Gallant for most wins in VGK history with 118 wins.
Pavel Dorofeyev skated in his 100th career game on Saturday night.
Jack Eichel tallied two assists on the night, bringing his season total to 35. Eichel reached the 35-assist mark in 33 games, surpassing Mark Stone (43 GP) as the fastest player in franchise to hit 35 assists in a season.
Vegas saw six different goal scorers in Saturday’s win. This is the third time this season Vegas has had six different goal scorers in a game (Oct. 26 vs. SJS and Nov. 23 vs. MTL)
ATTENDANCE: 17,862
LOOKING AHEAD
The Golden Knights close out the homestand on Monday when they face off against the Anaheim Ducks at 7 p.m. at T-Mobile Arena. Watch the game on Vegas 34, stream on KnightTime+, or listen live on FOX Sports Las Vegas 98.9/1340 and Deportes Vegas 1460.
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