This story was excerpted from Daniel Kramer’s Mariners Beat newsletter, with MLB.com's Josh Kirshenbaum filling in for this edition. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.
SEATTLE -- A weekend that the Mariners have been building up to for, well, five decades finally arrived, and the show that the organization put on across three days to celebrate 50 seasons did not disappoint.
In the past two years, the club has retired two numbers, unveiled a statue and announced two more. But this weekend was on a whole other level, with so many legends coming back to the Pacific Northwest for three straight days of celebration.
“I’m so glad I came,” said Bruce Bochte, who hit .290 across five seasons with Seattle from 1978-82. “It’s like, twice as good as I could’ve imagined. Seeing the guys, this new venue and the vibe in Seattle, it’s amazing.”
Here are nine highlights from a packed weekend at T-Mobile Park:
Romero takes the Derby crown
It barely took half an hour for a packed house Friday night to shift from a demoralizing loss to some of the loudest crowd pops of the season, for the organization’s first Alumni Home Run Derby. Eight Mariners alums took their hacks, and in the end, former outfielder Stefen Romero -- who hit just four homers in three seasons with the club -- took home the title after besting Austin Nola in the finals.
Hyphen’s buzzerbeaters
Watching former players swing is one thing; watching former pitchers swing is another. But Ryan Rowland-Smith gave the crowd one of the most hype moments of Friday night. The lefty -- who compiled a crisp 0-for-5 career line at the plate -- nearly went the full two minutes homerless, before getting a hold of one at the buzzer and sending it out to right. Then, in the “jackpot” round, he did it again, as his Mariners.TV broadcast partner Aaron Goldsmith lost his mind in the booth.
Oh, and did we mention the Aussie did it dressed as Steve Irwin?
Ichiro steps to the plate again
Romero won and Rowland-Smith went viral, but Friday’s Derby was always going to be about Ichiro Suzuki. The Hall of Famer is famous for maintaining his pregame routine as a special assistant in Seattle’s front office, but Friday was the first time fans got to see him hit since his final home game in 2018. And while he didn’t win the Derby, he put on a show in true Ichiro fashion.
First pitch (Félix edition)
It was only fitting for one of the franchise’s most prolific arms to open the weekend, and Félix Hernández delivered, walking out to Aloe Blacc’s “The Man” and delivering a strike to Eduard Bazardo.
“It was pretty legendary to play with him; his last year was my first year here,” J.P. Crawford said. “It seems like so long ago. Just to see him come back and he’s still the same guy, it’s really cool.”
Legendary photoshoot
A weekend of energy ended on a more chill -- but equally meaningful -- note. Ahead of Sunday’s game, season ticket holders were brought out onto the warning track around the field, and the honored players walked a circuit, stopping to take pictures and create mountains of memories for the fans.
Davis’ speech
Fittingly, the one speech by a player Saturday came from Mr. Mariner himself. Alvin Davis took the mic, and while he began by talking about what the event meant to him and everyone else involved, he couldn’t help directing a message of optimism to the team.
“Outsiders have doubted this franchise for 49 years,” Davis told the players in the dugout. “Let that doubt fuel you. Prove them wrong. We believe in you -- prove us right.”
Davis’ message came exactly one year after Ichiro stood in the same spot for his number retirement and urged the players to “seize the moment,” which immediately became a rallying cry in the club’s postseason run.
“Isn’t that ironic that we’re in a similar position to where we were last year?” Davis said Sunday.
The 50
The weekend was centered around the organization’s Top 50 Mariners list, and Saturday’s unveiling lived up to the hype. After beginning by remembering Julio Cruz and Dave Henderson -- whose families were in attendance -- T-Mobile Park got a procession of star after star. Forty-four honorees were in attendance, entering through the dugouts to take their place on the field before the organization’s four retired numbers -- Ken Griffey Jr., Edgar Martinez, Ichiro and Randy Johnson walked in together from the outfield.
“It’s just been like [being] a kid in the Hall of Fame,” Bochte said. “I’m like, ‘God, there’s Ichiro.’ I’m in awe.”
First pitch (Piniella edition)
Arguably the loudest cheer of the weekend came not for any of the 50 legends honored for their playing career, but for a legendary manager: Lou Piniella. Seattle’s longtime skipper was introduced at the very end of Saturday’s ceremony to throw the ceremonial first pitch to Dan Wilson, as the rest of the group huddled around him in front of the mound.
And the best part? It was a surprise for all of the players.
“That was so cool,” Jamie Moyer said. “I knew he was here, and when we were downstairs yesterday, they were giving us the Do's and the Don'ts … and they were like, ‘We have a surprise and nobody knows.’ Then they told us and it was like, ‘This is going to be really cool.’”
Rizzs honored
As the voice of the Mariners for over four decades, Rick Rizzs has been the emcee for all four number retirement ceremonies in franchise history, along with countless other celebrations. Saturday, he was right back at the mic for the 50 Seasons ceremony -- but he didn’t realize that he was about to become the star of the show.
Because while the ceremony was billed for the Top 50 Mariners, the unquestioned highlight of the afternoon came when John Stanton surprised just about everyone at T-Mobile Park by announcing that Rizzs would be inducted into the Mariners Hall of Fame next year.
“I had no idea what they were going to do with Rick; I don’t think any of us did,” Moyer said. “The spur-of-the-moment thing was really cool.”