The Mariners Are Good At Some Things

The Mariners are, and have been, terrible.  Maybe they’ll turn the corner soon, but it sure feels like they’re just going to continue losing 90 games a year until the end of eternity.

Let’s give them some credit, though.  For as bad as they are on the field, they do many things right otherwise.  Take, for instance, this story about their response to a young boy who wrote asking if they could help him out with a birthday/Father’s Day present for his dad.  Just go read it.  It’s a great story, and the kid is automatically in the running for Son of the Year.

The Mariners are really good at stuff like this.  They work hard to give fans a great experience and to contribute to the community.  Maybe that’s the norm with all sports teams, I don’t know, but it doesn’t have to be.  Much has been made about the value of a sports team to a community, especially around here with the loss of the Sonics.  Quantifying monetary and economic value is tough, but it’s hard to argue that the Mariners and other teams are anything less than tremendously valuable in countless other ways.

Like many fans, I get tired of the Mariners seemingly putting so much emphasis on the gameday experience while delivering such terrible teams.  I would not be at all sad if this ownership group sold the team tomorrow.  Still, don’t make the mistake of thinking that a great experience and a focus on contributing to the community is bad or detrimental to the actual baseball.  The off the field things are great.

If only the Mariners would realize that a winning team is the biggest part of a great gameday experience.  Then we’d have the best of both worlds.  Thank you, Mariners, for the many things you do.  Now, if you could add winning to the list, it would be much appreciated.

-Matthew