Yes, the city in that photo really is Seattle. Yes, that really is a nice blue sky overhead. When the clouds part, and you can see Lake Washington and the Cascadia Mountains, including Mount Rainier, it's actually a beautiful city. It's just that it rains so much, such a sight isn't all that common.
Before You Go. Seattle is notorious for rain, but T-Mobile Park has a retractable roof, so the games will not be rained out. Before you go, check the websites of the Seattle Times and the Seattle Post-Intelligencer for the weather forecast. Right now, it looks like you might get away with no rain, and even nice weather: They're predicting the low 80s for daylight and the low 60s for evenings, and hardly any chance of rain for any of the days. The roof might even be open.
Seattle is in the Pacific Time Zone, 3 hours behind New York. Adjust your timepieces accordingly.
There is high-speed passenger ferry service from Seattle to the Canadian city of Victoria, the capital of the Province of British Columbia. But it takes 2 hours and 45 minutes, and costs a bundle: $170 round-trip. (The scenery in Washington State and British Columbia is spectacular, and this is clearly part of what you're paying for.) From there, you can easily get to Vancouver. Currently, the exchange rate is US$1.00 = C$1.29, and C$1.00 = 78 cents.
If you want to make this trip, you will have to give confirmation within 48 hours of booking. And it's a passenger-only ferry service: No cars allowed. If you'd like to make a side trip to Vancouver, you're better off driving or taking the train. But any way you go over the border, you should have your passport with you.
Vancouver does have a baseball team, the Vancouver Canadians. Now a farm club of the Toronto Blue Jays, they've won their league's Pennant 11 times, including in 2017, and the Triple-A World Series in 1999.
The 5,157-seat Scotiabank Field at Nat Bailey Stadium is a classic, built in 1951 with support poles holding up an overhanging roof like old-time parks. But the team is no longer Triple-A: It's in the Northwest League, short-season Class A like the Staten Island Yankees and the Brooklyn Cyclones. "The C's" will be at home during the week in question.
Speaking of which...
Tickets. Unlike the Seahawks and Sounders, who sell out every home game, the Mariners averaged 22,317 per home game in 2019, the last pre-COVID season, about 45 percent of capacity. Even for a game against the Yankees, getting tickets shouldn't be a problem.
Main Level Infield Boxes will set you back $81, Main Level Outfield Boxes $46, Upper Level "View Boxes" $39, View Reserved $24, and Bleachers $32 – and you'll be a lot closer than you would have been if you'd had similar seats at the Kingdome. The upper deck outfield seats in that concrete toadstool might as well have been in Calgary.
Getting There. It's 2,854 miles from Times Square to Pioneer Square in Seattle, and 2,856 miles from Yankee Stadium to T-Mobile Park. In other words, if you're going, you're going to want to fly.
After all, even if you get someone to go with you, and you take turns, one drives while the other one sleeps, and you pack 2 days' worth of food, and you use the side of the Interstate as a toilet, and you don't get pulled over for speeding, you'll still need over 2 full days to get there. One way.
But, for future reference, if you really, really want to drive... Get onto Interstate 80 West in New Jersey, and stay on that until it merges with Interstate 90 west of Cleveland, then stay on 90 through Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois, into Wisconsin, where it merges with Interstate 94. Although you could take I-90 almost all the way, I-94 is actually going to be faster. Stay on I-94 through Minnesota and North Dakota before re-merging with I-90 in Montana, taking it through Idaho and into Washington, getting off I-94 at Exit 2B.
Not counting rest stops, you should be in New Jersey for an hour and a half, Pennsylvania for 5:15, Ohio for 4 hours, Indiana for 2:30, Illinois for 2 hours, Wisconsin for 3:15, Minnesota for 4:30, North Dakota for 6 hours, Montana for a whopping 13 hours (or 3 times the time it takes to get from New York to Boston), Idaho for 1:15 and 6:45 in Washington. That's 50 hours, and with rest stops, you're talking 3 full days.
That's still faster than Greyhound (69 hours, changing buses 5 times, in Pittsburgh, Chicago, Minneapolis, Billings and Spokane, $663 round-trip, though it can drop to $494 with advanced purchase) and Amtrak (70 hours, changing in Chicago, $596 before booking sleeping arrangements).
On Amtrak, you would leave Penn Station on the Lake Shore Limited at 3:40 PM Eastern Time on Friday, arrive at Union Station in Chicago at 9:50 AM Central Time on Saturday, and board the Empire Builder at 2:15 PM, and would reach King Street Station at 10:25 AM Pacific Time on Monday.
King Street Station is just to the north of the stadium complex, at S. King St. & 3rd Ave. S., and horns from the trains can sometimes be heard as the trains go down the east stands of CenturyLink Field and the right-field stands of T-Mobile Park. The Greyhound station is at 811 Stewart St. at 8th Ave., in the Central Business District, about halfway between the stadiums and the Seattle Center complex.
ALERT: Forget Amtrak this time. The Saturday Empire Builder out of Chicago is sold out.
A round-trip, nonstop flight from Newark to Seattle, is going to be pretty expensive, nearly $1,000. Link Light Rail can get you out of Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (Sea-Tac), and the same system has Stadium Station to get to T-Mobile Park and CenturyLink Field. The fare is $2.75.
A round-trip, nonstop flight from Newark to Seattle, is going to be pretty expensive, nearly $1,000. Link Light Rail can get you out of Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (Sea-Tac), and the same system has Stadium Station to get to T-Mobile Park and CenturyLink Field. The fare is $2.75.
You know what? Given the fares this season, if you really want to "cross Seattle off your list," maybe it would be better to wait until next season, despite the nice weather forecast.
Once In the City. Founded in 1853, and named for a Chief of the Duwamish Indians, Seattle is easily the biggest city in America's Northwest, with 740,000 people within the city limits and 4.5 million in its metropolitan area.
The Lumen Field facility includes the 7,000-seat Washington Music Theater, or WAMU Theater, for smaller events.
They have the usual ballpark fare, and baseball-named stands like the Batter Up Bar at Section 6, Big League Burger at 106, High Cheese Pizza at 109, 132, 141, 241 & 329; Grounds Crew Espresso at 111, The Natural (I'm guessing organic, or at least food with no artificial flavors) at 131, the Asian-themed Intentional Wok at 132, Double Play Chicken & Sausage at 137 & 341, Grounders Garlic Fries (the snack made famous by the San Francisco Giants) at 148, 326 & 337; Bases Loaded at 212, the Hot Stove Broiler at 218, Frozen Rope Ice Cream at 313 & 330, Good Hops Beer (as opposed to "bad hops") at 320 & 330, the Sweet Spot at 332, and the Caught Looking Lounge behind the bullpen.
The Left Field Gate has a stand called Blazing Bagels, a seafood stand called the Way Back Crab Shack, and a bar called the Flying Turtle Cantina. There are local favorites like Ivar's Seafood & Chowder, and ShishkaBerry's chocolate-dipped strawberries. There's no Starbucks or Seattle's Best Coffee stand at T-Mobile Park, but the city's coffee-soaked reputation is backed up with Grounds Crew Espresso.
As far as I know, T-Mobile is the only ballpark that has a vegetarian-only concession stand, All American Vegetarian, under Section 132. The ING Direct Hit It Here Cafe is behind the right field fence and provides views of the field. In the tradition of Boog's Barbecue in Baltimore and Bull's Barbecue in Philadelphia, Mariner legend Edgar Martinez opened Edgar's Cantina at T-Mobile in 2017.
According to a recent Thrillist article on the best food at each MLB stadium, the best thing to eat at T-Mobile Park is Liege waffles -- Liege being a city in Belgium, a country known for its waffles among other things -- at Sweet Iron at Section 136.
Former Yankee and Mariner 3rd baseman Mike Blowers, who grew up near Seattle and is now a Mariners broadcaster, started a food-related team tradition in 2007. During an Interleague game against the Cincinnati Reds, a fan tried to catch a foul ball along the right-field line, but instead spilled his tray of fries along the track. While chatting on the air and seeing the mishap, Blowers' partner, former WCBS-Channel 2 & WFAN announcer Dave Sims, suggested that Blowers should send a new tray of fries to the fan.
Blowers agreed, and sent his intern to deliver a plate of fries to the man. During the next game, fans made signs and boards, asking Blowers for free fries as well. Coincidentally, every time the fries were delivered, the Mariners seem to score or rally from a deficit, and thus the Rally Fries were created.
This became so popular with the fans that signs were even seen when the Mariners were on the road, though Blowers doesn't award winners on the road. Sometimes, in the tradition of the game show Let’s Make a Deal, fans wear costumes to get Blowers' attention. Silly? Sure, but it beats the Angels' stupid Rally Monkey.
Team History Displays. The Mariners began play in 1977, and have never been to the World Series. There are only 2 teams in the 4 major North American sports that have waited longer to get to the Finals: The NHL's Toronto Maple Leafs (1967) and the NBA's Atlanta Hawks (who have played in Atlanta since 1968, and haven't reached the Finals since they were in St. Louis in 1961). If you count multiple cities, add the Montreal Expos/Washington Nationals (1969/2005) and the NBA's Sacramento Kings (have only played in Sacramento since 1985 but haven't reached the Finals since they were the Rochester Royals in 1951, beating the Knicks).
Nevertheless, the Mariners have won 3 American League Western Division titles, in 1995, 1997 and 2001, and also won the AL's Wild Card in 2000. In 1995, they beat the Yankees in a remarkable AL Division Series before losing the AL Championship Series to the Cleveland Indians. In 1997, they lost the ALDS to the Indians. In 2000 they beat the Chicago White Sox, and in 2001 they beat the Indians. But in both 2000 and '01, they lost the ALCS to the Yankees. (Remember: 116 wins don’t mean a thing if you don't get that ring! Then again, we didn't get it that year, either.)
The 3 Division Title banners hang in right field. The one for 2001 mentions the 116 wins. There is also a single banner for all 3 ALCS berths.
There is no mention (as far as I know), anywhere in the stadium, of the achievements of the Mariners' Pacific Coast League predecessors, known as the Indians 1903-37, the Rainiers 1938-64 and again 1972-76, and the Angels 1965-68. Seattle won PCL Pennants in 1924, 1940, 1941, 1942, 1951, 1955 and 1966. So if you count Triple-A Pennants won by current MLB cities, Seattle has waited longer for their next Pennant than any other city.
Indeed, it can be said that Seattle is an underachieving city in sports, period. Until the Seahawks won the Super Bowl in early 2014, the city had won only 2 World Championships, ever: The 1917 Stanley Cup (I'll get to that in "Sidelights") and the 1979 NBA Championship. And since the SuperSonics' back-to-back Finals appearances in 1978-79, the city's only trips to the Finals had been the 1996 Sonics and the 2005-06 Seahawks, until the recent Seahawk Super Bowls. However, the Sounders have won 2 MLS Cups, and the Seattle Storm have won 4 WNBA Championships.
There's a Mariners Hall of Fame display under the 3rd base stands. The 9 members are:
* 1984-91 1st baseman Alvin Davis.
* 1987-2004 designated hitter Edgar Martinez, now back as a coach.
* 1988-2001 right fielder Jay Buhner -- as a Yankee Fan, you may remember him.
* 1989-98 pitcher Randy Johnson.
* 1989-99 and 2009-10 center fielder Ken Griffey Jr.
* 1994-2005 catcher Dan Wilson.
* 1996-2006 pitcher Jamie Moyer.
* 1993-2002 manager Lou Piniella -- as a Yankee Fan, you definitely remember him.
* And Dave Niehaus, who broadcast for the M's from their 1977 debut until his death following the 2010 season.
There are also statues of Griffey behind the home plate gate, and of Niehaus on the center field concourse.
Johnson was the 1st player with significant production as a Mariner to be elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame, but his plaque shows him wearing an Arizona Diamondbacks cap. Griffey became the 1st to go in with his plaque showing him wearing a Mariner cap. Martinez has followed him.
Although Gaylord Perry (who won his 300th game against the Yankees at the Kingdome in 1982), Goose Gossage, Rickey Henderson, manager Dick Williams and executive Pat Gillick have all been elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame, none have gotten in due to anything they did while employed by the Mariners' organization. Niehaus has been awarded the Ford Frick Award, considered the broadcasters' equivalent to Hall of Fame induction.
Griffey was also the 1st Mariner to have his number retired, 24. They have also 11 for Martinez, and the universally-retired 42 for Jackie Robinson. When they signed Robinson Cano in the 2013-14 off-season, they gave him 22, which he had worn for the Yankees until Roger Clemens' return, rather than the 24 he had been wearing for the Yankees.
Buhner's 19 has not been given out since they left the team. Davis' 21 is not currently being worn, although it has been since he left. Johnson's 51 was given out to Ichiro Suzuki, for whom it will likely be retired someday. The M's also have not issued Number 00 since Jeffrey Leonard left the club, as the number is worn by their mascot, the Mariner Moose. Previously, the Moose wore the year as his number, i.e. he wore 95 in the club's most iconic season.
In 1999, despite still being active and only 29 years old, Griffey was named to both The Sporting News' 100 Greatest Baseball Players and the Major League Baseball All-Century Team. In 2006, Mariner fans chose Griffey in a poll conducted for the DHL Hometown Heroes contest. In 2022, ESPN named its 100 Greatest Baseball Players. Among players who played significant time for the Mariners, Griffey was ranked 13th, Johnson 24th, A-Rod 26th, Ichiro 46th, and Beltré 97th.
After the Game. SoDo is not an especially high-crime area, and, as I said, Mariner fans do not get violent. You might get a little bit of verbal if you're wearing Yankee gear, but it won't get any worse than that.
Two bars are usually identified with Mariners and Seahawks games. Sluggers, formerly known as Sneakers (or "Sneaks" for short), is at 538 1st Avenue South, at the northwest corner of CenturyLink Field. A little further up, at 419 Occidental Avenue South, is F.X. McRory's. Keep in mind, though, that these will be Mariner-friendly bars.
As for Yankee-friendly bars, while there are Yankee Fans everywhere, I couldn't find anything specific on the Internet. I've been told that these 2 are good for football Giants fans, but I cannot confirm either: Buckley's (232 1st Ave. W. at Thomas St.), and the Lucky 7 Saloon (12715 NE 124th Street in Kirkland). Buckley's is just to the west of Seattle Center, near the waterfront, but the Lucky 7 is a fur piece from T-Mobile or even downtown, 18 miles northeast, and, without a car, you'd need a trolley and 2 buses. Not worth it.
Once In the City. Founded in 1853, and named for a Chief of the Duwamish Indians, Seattle is easily the biggest city in America's Northwest, with 740,000 people within the city limits and 4.5 million in its metropolitan area.
Just as Charlotte is called the Queen City of the Southeast, and Cincinnati the Queen City of the Midwest, Seattle is known as the Queen City of the Northwest. All its greenery has also gotten it the tag the Emerald City.
With Lake Washington, Puget Sound, and the Cascade mountain range nearby, including Mount Rainier, it may be, on those rare clear days, America's most beautiful metro area.
The Times is Seattle's only remaining daily print newspaper. The Post-Intelligencer is still in business, but in online form only. This is mainly due to the high cost of both paper and ink, and has doomed many newspapers completely, so Seattle is lucky to still, sort of, have 2 daily papers.
East-west street addresses increase from Puget Sound and the Alaskan Way on eastward. North-south addresses are separated by Yesler Way. ZIP Codes in the State of Washington start with the digits 980 to 994. In Seattle proper, it's 980 and 981; and for the suburbs, 982, 983 and 984. The Area Code for Seattle is 206. Interstate 405 serves as Seattle's "beltway." The city's population is about 66 percent white, 14 percent Asian, 8 percent black, 7 percent Hispanic, and 4 percent Native American. Seattle City Light is their electric company.
Sales tax in the State of Washington is 6.5 percent, but in the City of Seattle, it's 9.5 percent. Off-peak bus fare in Seattle is $2.25. In peak hours, a one-zone ride (either totally within the City of Seattle or in King County outside the city) is $2.50 and a two-zone ride (from the City to the County, or vice versa) is $3.00. The monorail is $2.25. The light rail fares, depending on distance, are between $2.00 and $2.75. Fares are paid with a farecard, or, as they call it, an ORCA card: One Regional Card for All.
Although Seattle is the largest city in the State of Washington, the State Capitol is Olympia, 60 miles to the southwest. It can be reached from Seattle by public transportation, taking Bus 594 to Lakewood, and then transferring to Bus 620. It takes about 2 1/2 hours.
First Avenue is the 3rd base side, the 1st base side is Atlantic Street/Edgar Martinez Drive, the left field side is Royal Brougham Way (Royal Brougham was not a car or a brand of booze, but the name of a Seattle sportswriter who championed the city as a site for major league sports), and the right field side is the railroad.
Parking is $20. With the ballpark being at the southern edge of downtown, if you drive in and park, you're likely to enter on the left field or 3rd base side.
It opened midway through the 1999 season. For its 1st 20 seasons of operation, the ballpark was known as Safeco Field, for an insurance company. But the naming rights ran out, and T-Mobile snapped them up. Unfortunately, their pink color scheme now pervades the ballpark, and it really clashes with Mariner blue & green.
Michael Kun and Howard Bloom, Red Sox fans and the authors of The Baseball Uncyclopedia, have said that Safeco is the best ballpark ever built, better than their beloved Fenway, mainly because it's more comfortable and convenient. It's certainly a far cry better than its predecessor, the hideous concrete King County Domed Stadium, a.k.a. the Kingdome (1976-2000).
But there are 2 things that I believe damage T-Mobile Park's atmosphere. Well, 3, counting the new pink corporate color scheme. The roof hanging over right field makes it look less like a ballpark and more like an airplane hangar. (The same effect is worse in Houston, worse still in Milwaukee, and worst of all in Phoenix.) And being next to King Street Station, you're going to hear almost as many train horns as you would hear planes in Flushing Meadow. But it's still a pretty good ballpark.
Seating capacity is 47,476. The field has always been natural grass (unlike the Kingdome, which used artificial turf), and asymmetrical, and points northeast. Outfield distances are as follows: 331 feet to left, 388 to left-center, 405 to center, 385 to right-center, and 326 to right. Home plate is the same one used at the Kingdome, so it's been in use since 1977.
Unlike the homer-happy Kingdome, T-Mobile is a pitcher's park, leading to Ken Griffey Jr. and Alex Rodriguez wanting to leave the Mariners, and convincing Felix Hernandez to stay. (Although it didn't convince Cliff Lee to stay. Randy Johnson was already gone by the time Safeco opened.)
Mike Zunino hit the longest home run at T-Mobile Park so far, a 470-foot shot on June 29, 2018. Mark McGwire hit the longest at the Kingdome, a 538-foot drive off Randy Johnson in 1997.
The Emerald Bowl, an end-of-season college football game, is played at T-Mobile Park. On March 2, 2002, it hosted a soccer game between the national teams of the U.S. and Honduras, and the U.S. won. The Kingdome hosted the All-Star Game in 1979, T-Mobile Park did in 2001, and will again in 2023.
With Lake Washington, Puget Sound, and the Cascade mountain range nearby, including Mount Rainier, it may be, on those rare clear days, America's most beautiful metro area.
Puget Sound, with Mount Rainier in the background
East-west street addresses increase from Puget Sound and the Alaskan Way on eastward. North-south addresses are separated by Yesler Way. ZIP Codes in the State of Washington start with the digits 980 to 994. In Seattle proper, it's 980 and 981; and for the suburbs, 982, 983 and 984. The Area Code for Seattle is 206. Interstate 405 serves as Seattle's "beltway." The city's population is about 66 percent white, 14 percent Asian, 8 percent black, 7 percent Hispanic, and 4 percent Native American. Seattle City Light is their electric company.
The Washington State House in Olympia
As a port city, Seattle has always been a home to job-seekers, both native-born and immigrant. As a result, there has frequently been trouble. There was a riot in 1886. In 1919, the leftist Industrial Workers of the World (a.k.a. the IWW or "Wobblies") led a 6-day general strike. There were anti-Filipino riots in Washington State in the Yakima Valley in 1927 and the Wenatchee Valley in 1928. In 1999, a meeting of the World Trade Organization was disrupted by leftist protestors.
In 2020, despite restrictions due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Seattle was the site of a demonstration calling for the city to become a "Cop-Free Zone," following multiple accusation of police brutality, there and all over America.
Going In. The official address of T-Mobile Park is 1516 First Avenue South. It is in a neighborhood called SoDo, for "South of Downtown." This led to M's fans saying their hyped-up but ultimately failed 2001 team had "SoDo Mojo."
First Avenue is the 3rd base side, the 1st base side is Atlantic Street/Edgar Martinez Drive, the left field side is Royal Brougham Way (Royal Brougham was not a car or a brand of booze, but the name of a Seattle sportswriter who championed the city as a site for major league sports), and the right field side is the railroad.
Statue of Ken Griffey Jr. at home plate gate
It opened midway through the 1999 season. For its 1st 20 seasons of operation, the ballpark was known as Safeco Field, for an insurance company. But the naming rights ran out, and T-Mobile snapped them up. Unfortunately, their pink color scheme now pervades the ballpark, and it really clashes with Mariner blue & green.
Michael Kun and Howard Bloom, Red Sox fans and the authors of The Baseball Uncyclopedia, have said that Safeco is the best ballpark ever built, better than their beloved Fenway, mainly because it's more comfortable and convenient. It's certainly a far cry better than its predecessor, the hideous concrete King County Domed Stadium, a.k.a. the Kingdome (1976-2000).
Seating capacity is 47,476. The field has always been natural grass (unlike the Kingdome, which used artificial turf), and asymmetrical, and points northeast. Outfield distances are as follows: 331 feet to left, 388 to left-center, 405 to center, 385 to right-center, and 326 to right. Home plate is the same one used at the Kingdome, so it's been in use since 1977.
Unlike the homer-happy Kingdome, T-Mobile is a pitcher's park, leading to Ken Griffey Jr. and Alex Rodriguez wanting to leave the Mariners, and convincing Felix Hernandez to stay. (Although it didn't convince Cliff Lee to stay. Randy Johnson was already gone by the time Safeco opened.)
Mike Zunino hit the longest home run at T-Mobile Park so far, a 470-foot shot on June 29, 2018. Mark McGwire hit the longest at the Kingdome, a 538-foot drive off Randy Johnson in 1997.
The Kingdome. It served its purpose, getting Seattle
into MLB and the NFL, and was thankfully replaced.
Lumen Field, formerly Seahawks Stadium, Qwest Field and CenturyLink Field, home of the NFL's Seattle Seahawks and MLS' Seattle Sounders, is just to the north of T-Mobile Park, across Royal Brougham Way, on the site of the Kingdome.
It is regarded as the loudest outdoor facility in the NFL (especially now that the Washington Redskins have left compact RFK Stadium and moved to their far less atmospheric stadium in the suburbs), and it has one of the better soccer atmospheres in the U.S. as well.
The U.S. soccer team has played at CenturyLink 5 times, and won them all, most recently a Copa America match with Ecuador on June 16, 2016. It also hosted the 2009 MLS Cup Final. It has been approved by FIFA to be one of the host venues for the 2026 World Cup. Lumen is a telecommunications outfit, which bought out similar company CenturyLink, which bought out similar company Qwest.
It is regarded as the loudest outdoor facility in the NFL (especially now that the Washington Redskins have left compact RFK Stadium and moved to their far less atmospheric stadium in the suburbs), and it has one of the better soccer atmospheres in the U.S. as well.
The U.S. soccer team has played at CenturyLink 5 times, and won them all, most recently a Copa America match with Ecuador on June 16, 2016. It also hosted the 2009 MLS Cup Final. It has been approved by FIFA to be one of the host venues for the 2026 World Cup. Lumen is a telecommunications outfit, which bought out similar company CenturyLink, which bought out similar company Qwest.
T-Mobile Park, with CenturyLink Field behind left field
Food. As a waterfront city, and as the Northwest's biggest transportation and freight hub, it is no surprise that Seattle is a good food city, with the legendary Pike Place Market serving as their "South Street Seaport." Fortunately, T-Mobile Park lives up to this.
They have the usual ballpark fare, and baseball-named stands like the Batter Up Bar at Section 6, Big League Burger at 106, High Cheese Pizza at 109, 132, 141, 241 & 329; Grounds Crew Espresso at 111, The Natural (I'm guessing organic, or at least food with no artificial flavors) at 131, the Asian-themed Intentional Wok at 132, Double Play Chicken & Sausage at 137 & 341, Grounders Garlic Fries (the snack made famous by the San Francisco Giants) at 148, 326 & 337; Bases Loaded at 212, the Hot Stove Broiler at 218, Frozen Rope Ice Cream at 313 & 330, Good Hops Beer (as opposed to "bad hops") at 320 & 330, the Sweet Spot at 332, and the Caught Looking Lounge behind the bullpen.
The Left Field Gate has a stand called Blazing Bagels, a seafood stand called the Way Back Crab Shack, and a bar called the Flying Turtle Cantina. There are local favorites like Ivar's Seafood & Chowder, and ShishkaBerry's chocolate-dipped strawberries. There's no Starbucks or Seattle's Best Coffee stand at T-Mobile Park, but the city's coffee-soaked reputation is backed up with Grounds Crew Espresso.
As far as I know, T-Mobile is the only ballpark that has a vegetarian-only concession stand, All American Vegetarian, under Section 132. The ING Direct Hit It Here Cafe is behind the right field fence and provides views of the field. In the tradition of Boog's Barbecue in Baltimore and Bull's Barbecue in Philadelphia, Mariner legend Edgar Martinez opened Edgar's Cantina at T-Mobile in 2017.
According to a recent Thrillist article on the best food at each MLB stadium, the best thing to eat at T-Mobile Park is Liege waffles -- Liege being a city in Belgium, a country known for its waffles among other things -- at Sweet Iron at Section 136.
Former Yankee and Mariner 3rd baseman Mike Blowers, who grew up near Seattle and is now a Mariners broadcaster, started a food-related team tradition in 2007. During an Interleague game against the Cincinnati Reds, a fan tried to catch a foul ball along the right-field line, but instead spilled his tray of fries along the track. While chatting on the air and seeing the mishap, Blowers' partner, former WCBS-Channel 2 & WFAN announcer Dave Sims, suggested that Blowers should send a new tray of fries to the fan.
Blowers agreed, and sent his intern to deliver a plate of fries to the man. During the next game, fans made signs and boards, asking Blowers for free fries as well. Coincidentally, every time the fries were delivered, the Mariners seem to score or rally from a deficit, and thus the Rally Fries were created.
This became so popular with the fans that signs were even seen when the Mariners were on the road, though Blowers doesn't award winners on the road. Sometimes, in the tradition of the game show Let’s Make a Deal, fans wear costumes to get Blowers' attention. Silly? Sure, but it beats the Angels' stupid Rally Monkey.
Team History Displays. The Mariners began play in 1977, and have never been to the World Series. There are only 2 teams in the 4 major North American sports that have waited longer to get to the Finals: The NHL's Toronto Maple Leafs (1967) and the NBA's Atlanta Hawks (who have played in Atlanta since 1968, and haven't reached the Finals since they were in St. Louis in 1961). If you count multiple cities, add the Montreal Expos/Washington Nationals (1969/2005) and the NBA's Sacramento Kings (have only played in Sacramento since 1985 but haven't reached the Finals since they were the Rochester Royals in 1951, beating the Knicks).
Nevertheless, the Mariners have won 3 American League Western Division titles, in 1995, 1997 and 2001, and also won the AL's Wild Card in 2000. In 1995, they beat the Yankees in a remarkable AL Division Series before losing the AL Championship Series to the Cleveland Indians. In 1997, they lost the ALDS to the Indians. In 2000 they beat the Chicago White Sox, and in 2001 they beat the Indians. But in both 2000 and '01, they lost the ALCS to the Yankees. (Remember: 116 wins don’t mean a thing if you don't get that ring! Then again, we didn't get it that year, either.)
The 3 Division Title banners hang in right field. The one for 2001 mentions the 116 wins. There is also a single banner for all 3 ALCS berths.
Indeed, it can be said that Seattle is an underachieving city in sports, period. Until the Seahawks won the Super Bowl in early 2014, the city had won only 2 World Championships, ever: The 1917 Stanley Cup (I'll get to that in "Sidelights") and the 1979 NBA Championship. And since the SuperSonics' back-to-back Finals appearances in 1978-79, the city's only trips to the Finals had been the 1996 Sonics and the 2005-06 Seahawks, until the recent Seahawk Super Bowls. However, the Sounders have won 2 MLS Cups, and the Seattle Storm have won 4 WNBA Championships.
There's a Mariners Hall of Fame display under the 3rd base stands. The 9 members are:
* 1984-91 1st baseman Alvin Davis.
* 1987-2004 designated hitter Edgar Martinez, now back as a coach.
* 1988-2001 right fielder Jay Buhner -- as a Yankee Fan, you may remember him.
* 1989-98 pitcher Randy Johnson.
* 1989-99 and 2009-10 center fielder Ken Griffey Jr.
* 1994-2005 catcher Dan Wilson.
* 1996-2006 pitcher Jamie Moyer.
* 1993-2002 manager Lou Piniella -- as a Yankee Fan, you definitely remember him.
* And Dave Niehaus, who broadcast for the M's from their 1977 debut until his death following the 2010 season.
There are also statues of Griffey behind the home plate gate, and of Niehaus on the center field concourse.
Although Gaylord Perry (who won his 300th game against the Yankees at the Kingdome in 1982), Goose Gossage, Rickey Henderson, manager Dick Williams and executive Pat Gillick have all been elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame, none have gotten in due to anything they did while employed by the Mariners' organization. Niehaus has been awarded the Ford Frick Award, considered the broadcasters' equivalent to Hall of Fame induction.
Griffey was also the 1st Mariner to have his number retired, 24. They have also 11 for Martinez, and the universally-retired 42 for Jackie Robinson. When they signed Robinson Cano in the 2013-14 off-season, they gave him 22, which he had worn for the Yankees until Roger Clemens' return, rather than the 24 he had been wearing for the Yankees.
But they have had no qualms about re-issuing the 3 worn by former Mariner and Yankee Alex Rodriguez; the 5 worn by former Mariner, Yankee and Met John Olerud; the 14 worn by former Yankee player, former Yankee manager, and former Mariner manager Lou Piniella; the 23 worn there by former Mariner and Yankee Tino Martinez; the 29 worn by probable future Hall-of-Famer Adrián Beltré; the 34 worn by former Mariner and Yankee Freddy Garcia; or the 44 worn by former Mariner and Met Mike Cameron. Of those, only 34 is not currently being worn.
In 1999, despite still being active and only 29 years old, Griffey was named to both The Sporting News' 100 Greatest Baseball Players and the Major League Baseball All-Century Team. In 2006, Mariner fans chose Griffey in a poll conducted for the DHL Hometown Heroes contest. In 2022, ESPN named its 100 Greatest Baseball Players. Among players who played significant time for the Mariners, Griffey was ranked 13th, Johnson 24th, A-Rod 26th, Ichiro 46th, and Beltré 97th.
With neither Portland nor Vancouver having ever had a Major League Baseball team, and being far removed from even their American League Western Division rivals (Oakland, Anaheim, Dallas and Houston), the Mariners don't have a geographical rival. Given their Playoff history, it can be argued that the Mariners' biggest rivals are... the Yankees.
Stuff. The main Team Store is located along the 3rd base side. Additional merchandise locations and novelty kiosks are open throughout the stadium during all home games. As far as I know, they don't sell hats resembling sailor's caps with the team logo on them, keeping with the "mariner" image; or hats resembling the antlers of the Mariner Moose, but if they do, I'll bet they're a big seller.
Having never been to the World Series thus far, the Mariners don't commemorate their history with many books, but there is an Essential Games of the Seattle Mariners DVD collection. It features only 4 games, as opposed to most of these (including the Yanks' and Mets') having 6: The 1995 AL West Playoff with the California Angels (as the Anaheim team was then officially known), forged when the Halos had an epic collapse and the M's an equally amazing comeback; 1995 ALDS Game 5 (known to us as Donnie Baseball's swan song), 2000 ALDS Game 3, and the 2001 AL West clincher against the Indians (not to be confused with the '01 ALDS clincher, also against the Indians).
There are books about the Mariners, in spite of their comparative lack of history. The staff of the Seattle Post-Intelligencer chronicled the club's most important season, the one that got fans to vote to get Safeco/T-Mobile built and save Major League Baseball in the Northwest, in A Magic Season: The Book on the 1995 Seattle Mariners.
C.N. Donnelly wrote Baseball's Greatest Series: Yankees, Mariners, and the 1995 Matchup That Changed History. (It may not have been the greatest postseason series in baseball history, but it sure did change history: Not only did it save baseball in Seattle, but it forced the Yankees to make the changes that led to the 1996-2003 dynasty.) A more acerbic look at this glory-hungry franchise is Shipwrecked: A People's History of the Seattle Mariners, published in 2012 by Jon Wells.
During the Game. A recent Thrillist article on "Baseball's Most Intolerable Fans" ranked the Mariners' fans 20th -- just above the most tolerable 1/3rd of baseball fans. The article pointed out that...
The highlight of Mariners fandom was winning a divisional playoff game in 1995. People born after that game will be able to legally drink soon. There are kids in Seattle high schools right now who don't even remember the team being relevant. So M's fans are now made up of older people with revisionist history about how "fun" the Kingdome was, and younger people who go to Safeco and talk about the Seahawks. Seattleites have shown they can be great fans when a team even tries to win, but despite spending the GNP of Fiji on free agents, the Mariners haven't made a playoff push in over a decade.
Well, there was the 116-win season of 2001, so a fan born in the last years of the Kingdome wouldn't remember that, either. But at least they don't remember how inadequate as a baseball facility the Kingdome actually was.
Wearing Yankee gear in Seattle, including inside T-Mobile Park, will not endanger your safety. Although Mariner fans hate the Yankees more than any other team, including their AL West opponents (the Angels, A's and Texas Rangers), they are generally nonviolent. Laid-back, even: When Clay Bennett bought the NBA's Seattle SuperSonics and moved them to Oklahoma City, there was a lot of sadness, but not much of a protest, even though the Sonics were the city's 1st major league sports team, had usually been good, and won what was then the city's last major championship.
None of these games against the Yankees will feature a promotion. The Mariners hold auditions for National Anthem singers, instead of having a regular. They don't have a lot to hold your attention during a game. They copy the Texas Rangers' Dot Race, the Milwaukee Brewers' Sausage Race, and the Yankees' Great City Subway Race, with an animated hydroplane race on the scoreboard, in honor of Seafair, held in Seattle every Summer. Each boat is sponsored by a local business.
Stuff. The main Team Store is located along the 3rd base side. Additional merchandise locations and novelty kiosks are open throughout the stadium during all home games. As far as I know, they don't sell hats resembling sailor's caps with the team logo on them, keeping with the "mariner" image; or hats resembling the antlers of the Mariner Moose, but if they do, I'll bet they're a big seller.
Having never been to the World Series thus far, the Mariners don't commemorate their history with many books, but there is an Essential Games of the Seattle Mariners DVD collection. It features only 4 games, as opposed to most of these (including the Yanks' and Mets') having 6: The 1995 AL West Playoff with the California Angels (as the Anaheim team was then officially known), forged when the Halos had an epic collapse and the M's an equally amazing comeback; 1995 ALDS Game 5 (known to us as Donnie Baseball's swan song), 2000 ALDS Game 3, and the 2001 AL West clincher against the Indians (not to be confused with the '01 ALDS clincher, also against the Indians).
There are books about the Mariners, in spite of their comparative lack of history. The staff of the Seattle Post-Intelligencer chronicled the club's most important season, the one that got fans to vote to get Safeco/T-Mobile built and save Major League Baseball in the Northwest, in A Magic Season: The Book on the 1995 Seattle Mariners.
C.N. Donnelly wrote Baseball's Greatest Series: Yankees, Mariners, and the 1995 Matchup That Changed History. (It may not have been the greatest postseason series in baseball history, but it sure did change history: Not only did it save baseball in Seattle, but it forced the Yankees to make the changes that led to the 1996-2003 dynasty.) A more acerbic look at this glory-hungry franchise is Shipwrecked: A People's History of the Seattle Mariners, published in 2012 by Jon Wells.
During the Game. A recent Thrillist article on "Baseball's Most Intolerable Fans" ranked the Mariners' fans 20th -- just above the most tolerable 1/3rd of baseball fans. The article pointed out that...
The highlight of Mariners fandom was winning a divisional playoff game in 1995. People born after that game will be able to legally drink soon. There are kids in Seattle high schools right now who don't even remember the team being relevant. So M's fans are now made up of older people with revisionist history about how "fun" the Kingdome was, and younger people who go to Safeco and talk about the Seahawks. Seattleites have shown they can be great fans when a team even tries to win, but despite spending the GNP of Fiji on free agents, the Mariners haven't made a playoff push in over a decade.
Well, there was the 116-win season of 2001, so a fan born in the last years of the Kingdome wouldn't remember that, either. But at least they don't remember how inadequate as a baseball facility the Kingdome actually was.
Wearing Yankee gear in Seattle, including inside T-Mobile Park, will not endanger your safety. Although Mariner fans hate the Yankees more than any other team, including their AL West opponents (the Angels, A's and Texas Rangers), they are generally nonviolent. Laid-back, even: When Clay Bennett bought the NBA's Seattle SuperSonics and moved them to Oklahoma City, there was a lot of sadness, but not much of a protest, even though the Sonics were the city's 1st major league sports team, had usually been good, and won what was then the city's last major championship.
None of these games against the Yankees will feature a promotion. The Mariners hold auditions for National Anthem singers, instead of having a regular. They don't have a lot to hold your attention during a game. They copy the Texas Rangers' Dot Race, the Milwaukee Brewers' Sausage Race, and the Yankees' Great City Subway Race, with an animated hydroplane race on the scoreboard, in honor of Seafair, held in Seattle every Summer. Each boat is sponsored by a local business.
Just as the Yankees have "The Great City Subway Race," the Mariners have Hydroplane Races, celebrating boat races on Puget Sound.
Aside from the Rally Fries, there's no special "Get Loud" device, unless you want to count the playing of "Louie, Louie" by Northwest-based band the Kingsmen, which is played after "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" at the 7th Inning Stretch. Their postgame victory song is "Fire" by Seattle native Jimi Hendrix.
Since Edward McMichael, a.k.a. Tuba Man, died, there's been no really noticeable Mariner fans like New York cowbell men Freddy "Sez" Schuman and Milton Ousland (Yankees) and Eddie Boison (Mets).
In 2011, the Mariners' marketing staff came up with an idea to encourage the growing fanbase of "King Felix." (Funny, but I thought you had to have a crown to be a king. He's never even seen a postseason game except on television. In fact, since he got to Seattle, the Mariners have never even come close.) Every Hernandez start at T-Mobile is now accompanied by a King's Court section, a place for his fans to sing, dance and cheer while donning custom-made shirts.
The team encouraged fans to dress like Larry Bernandez, Hernandez's alter ego from a Mariners TV Commercial, or show up in wacky costumes, rewarding the best with a ceremonial turkey leg. (The favorite snack of 16th Century English monarch King Henry VIII.)
Do they know this is a ripoff of a section at Philadelphia's Veterans Stadium, where fans used to wear werewolf masks and call themselves The Wolf Pack when Randy Wolf pitched for the Phillies? Those same fans also put on sombreros for Vicente Padilla and called themselves the Padilla Flotilla, and big fake mustaches for Sal Fasano and called themselves Sal's Pals. (Then again, Yankee Fans have done the same, with "Judge's Chambers" in right field for Aaron Judge.)
Fitting in with the Pacific Northwest's image, the team's mascot is the Mariner Moose. You may remember a real moose walking through the streets of Cicely, Alaska in the opening sequence of the TV show Northern Exposure. That sequence was filmed in Roslyn, Washington, 82 miles down I-90 to the southeast of T-Mobile.
You may also remember that, during the 1995 ALDS between the Yanks and M's, the Moose was doing the artificial-turf equivalent of water-skiing behind an ATV, when he lost control and his rollerblades led him to crash into the outfield wall, breaking his ankle. He continued performing on crutches (though not doing the skating) through the rest of the Playoffs. He wore Number 95 at the time, matching the year, but has worn Number 00 since 2000.
The Mariners' postgame victory song is "Fire" by Seattle native Jimi Hendrix.
Since Edward McMichael, a.k.a. Tuba Man, died, there's been no really noticeable Mariner fans like New York cowbell men Freddy "Sez" Schuman and Milton Ousland (Yankees) and Eddie Boison (Mets).
In 2011, the Mariners' marketing staff came up with an idea to encourage the growing fanbase of "King Felix." (Funny, but I thought you had to have a crown to be a king. He's never even seen a postseason game except on television. In fact, since he got to Seattle, the Mariners have never even come close.) Every Hernandez start at T-Mobile is now accompanied by a King's Court section, a place for his fans to sing, dance and cheer while donning custom-made shirts.
The team encouraged fans to dress like Larry Bernandez, Hernandez's alter ego from a Mariners TV Commercial, or show up in wacky costumes, rewarding the best with a ceremonial turkey leg. (The favorite snack of 16th Century English monarch King Henry VIII.)
Do they know this is a ripoff of a section at Philadelphia's Veterans Stadium, where fans used to wear werewolf masks and call themselves The Wolf Pack when Randy Wolf pitched for the Phillies? Those same fans also put on sombreros for Vicente Padilla and called themselves the Padilla Flotilla, and big fake mustaches for Sal Fasano and called themselves Sal's Pals. (Then again, Yankee Fans have done the same, with "Judge's Chambers" in right field for Aaron Judge.)
Fitting in with the Pacific Northwest's image, the team's mascot is the Mariner Moose. You may remember a real moose walking through the streets of Cicely, Alaska in the opening sequence of the TV show Northern Exposure. That sequence was filmed in Roslyn, Washington, 82 miles down I-90 to the southeast of T-Mobile.
You may also remember that, during the 1995 ALDS between the Yanks and M's, the Moose was doing the artificial-turf equivalent of water-skiing behind an ATV, when he lost control and his rollerblades led him to crash into the outfield wall, breaking his ankle. He continued performing on crutches (though not doing the skating) through the rest of the Playoffs. He wore Number 95 at the time, matching the year, but has worn Number 00 since 2000.
The Moose with his pals: Squatch,
of the now-lost SuperSonics, and Blitz of the Seahawks.
After the Game. SoDo is not an especially high-crime area, and, as I said, Mariner fans do not get violent. You might get a little bit of verbal if you're wearing Yankee gear, but it won't get any worse than that.
Two bars are usually identified with Mariners and Seahawks games. Sluggers, formerly known as Sneakers (or "Sneaks" for short), is at 538 1st Avenue South, at the northwest corner of CenturyLink Field. A little further up, at 419 Occidental Avenue South, is F.X. McRory's. Keep in mind, though, that these will be Mariner-friendly bars.
As for Yankee-friendly bars, while there are Yankee Fans everywhere, I couldn't find anything specific on the Internet. I've been told that these 2 are good for football Giants fans, but I cannot confirm either: Buckley's (232 1st Ave. W. at Thomas St.), and the Lucky 7 Saloon (12715 NE 124th Street in Kirkland). Buckley's is just to the west of Seattle Center, near the waterfront, but the Lucky 7 is a fur piece from T-Mobile or even downtown, 18 miles northeast, and, without a car, you'd need a trolley and 2 buses. Not worth it.
If you visit during the European soccer season, which is once again upon us, the leading "football pub" in the Pacific Northwest is The George and Dragon Pub, 206 N. 36th Street, 5 miles north of downtown. Bus 40.
Sidelights. On November 30, 2018, Thrillist published a list of "America's 25 Most Fun Cities," and Seattle came in 11th. Aside from the Seattle Center and the T-Mobile/CenturyLink complex, Seattle doesn't have a lot of sports sites worth mentioning. But there are places that should be mentioned.
* Sick's Stadium. The PCL team played 2½ miles southeast of T-Mobile Park, first at Dugdale Field (1913-1932) and then at Sick's Stadium (1938-68 and 1972-76, built by Rainiers' owner Emil Sick). The Seattle Pilots also played at Sick's, but lasted only one year, 1969, before being moved to Milwaukee to become the Brewers, and are now chiefly remembered for ex-Yankee pitcher Jim Bouton's diary of that season, Ball Four.
The book gives awful details of the place's inadequacy: As an 11,000-seat ballpark, it was fine for Triple-A ball in the 1940s, '50s and '60s; expanded to 25,420 seats for the Pilots, it was a lousy place to watch, and a worse one to play, baseball in anything like the modern era.
Elvis Presley sang at Sick's on September 1, 1957 (since it had more seats than any indoor facility in town); supposedly, Hendrix, then 15, was there. A few days prior, Floyd Patterson defended the heavyweight title there by knocking out fellow 1956 Olympic Gold Medalist Pete Rademacher.
Demolished in 1979 after the construction of the Kingdome (whose inadequacies were very different but no less glaring), the site of Sick's Stadium is now occupied by a Lowe's store. 2700 Rainier Avenue South, bounded also by McClellan & Bayview Sts. & Martin Luther King Jr. Way. Mount Baker station on the Link light rail system.
* Husky Stadium. The home of the University of Washington football, the largest stadium in the Pacific Northwest (including Canada) is right on Lake Washington, and is one of the nicest-looking stadiums in college football. A rare feature in major college football is that fans can dock right outside and tailgate by boat. (The only others at which this is possible: Neyland Stadium at the University of Tennessee, and Heinz Field for University of Pittsburgh games.)
It opened in 1920, making it the oldest stadium in the Pacific-12 Conference. The Seahawks played a few home games here in 1994, after some tiles fell from the Kingdome roof, and played their games here in 2000 and 2001 between the demolition of the Kingdome and the opening of what's now CenturyLink Field. In 1923, it was the site of the last public speech given by President Warren G. Harding before his death in a San Francisco hotel.
A major renovation was recently completed, necessary due to age and the moisture from being on the water and in Seattle's rainy climate. Pretty much everything but the north stand of the east-pointing horseshoe was demolished and replaced.
The Huskies played the 2012 season at CenturyLink, and moved into the revamped, 70,138-seat Husky Stadium for the 2013 season. Rutgers University will play its 1st game of the 2016 football game against Washington here, on Saturday, September 3. 3800 Montlake Blvd. NE, at Pacific Street. Light Rail to University of Washington Station.
* Edmundson Pavilion. Adjacent to Husky Stadium, at 3870 Montlake, is Alaska Airlines Arena at Clarence S. "Hec" Edmundson Pavilion, the home of "U-Dub" basketball since 1927. Hec was the school's longtime basketball and track coach, and "Hec Ed" hosted the NCAA Final Four in 1949 (Kentucky over Oklahoma A&M, the school now known as Oklahoma State) and 1952 (Kansas over St. John's). It has also hosted the State of Washington's high school basketball finals.
UW has been to the Final Four only once, in 1953, although they've won the regular-season title in the league now called the Pac-12 11 times, including 2012; and the Conference Tournament 3 times, most recently in 2011. Washington State, across the State in Pullman, reached the Championship Game in 1941, but hasn't been back to the Final Four since.
The Kingdome hosted the Final Four in 1984, Georgetown over Houston; 1989, Michigan over Seton Hall; and 1995, UCLA over Arkansas. It also hosted 3 U.S. soccer team matches: A win, a loss, and a draw; and Soccer Bowl '76, a 3-0 win by the Toronto Metros over the Minnesota Kicks.
* Tacoma Dome. The Sonics used this building during the 1994-95 season, as the Seattle Center Coliseum was demolished and the KeyArena put up in its place. Opening in 1983, it seats 17,100, and its most common use has been for minor-league hockey and concerts. 2727 East D Street, about 32 miles south of downtown Seattle. It can be reached from downtown Seattle by Bus 590, 592, 594 or 595, and it would take about 45 minutes.
Sidelights. On November 30, 2018, Thrillist published a list of "America's 25 Most Fun Cities," and Seattle came in 11th. Aside from the Seattle Center and the T-Mobile/CenturyLink complex, Seattle doesn't have a lot of sports sites worth mentioning. But there are places that should be mentioned.
* Sick's Stadium. The PCL team played 2½ miles southeast of T-Mobile Park, first at Dugdale Field (1913-1932) and then at Sick's Stadium (1938-68 and 1972-76, built by Rainiers' owner Emil Sick). The Seattle Pilots also played at Sick's, but lasted only one year, 1969, before being moved to Milwaukee to become the Brewers, and are now chiefly remembered for ex-Yankee pitcher Jim Bouton's diary of that season, Ball Four.
Elvis Presley sang at Sick's on September 1, 1957 (since it had more seats than any indoor facility in town); supposedly, Hendrix, then 15, was there. A few days prior, Floyd Patterson defended the heavyweight title there by knocking out fellow 1956 Olympic Gold Medalist Pete Rademacher.
Demolished in 1979 after the construction of the Kingdome (whose inadequacies were very different but no less glaring), the site of Sick's Stadium is now occupied by a Lowe's store. 2700 Rainier Avenue South, bounded also by McClellan & Bayview Sts. & Martin Luther King Jr. Way. Mount Baker station on the Link light rail system.
* Husky Stadium. The home of the University of Washington football, the largest stadium in the Pacific Northwest (including Canada) is right on Lake Washington, and is one of the nicest-looking stadiums in college football. A rare feature in major college football is that fans can dock right outside and tailgate by boat. (The only others at which this is possible: Neyland Stadium at the University of Tennessee, and Heinz Field for University of Pittsburgh games.)
It opened in 1920, making it the oldest stadium in the Pacific-12 Conference. The Seahawks played a few home games here in 1994, after some tiles fell from the Kingdome roof, and played their games here in 2000 and 2001 between the demolition of the Kingdome and the opening of what's now CenturyLink Field. In 1923, it was the site of the last public speech given by President Warren G. Harding before his death in a San Francisco hotel.
A major renovation was recently completed, necessary due to age and the moisture from being on the water and in Seattle's rainy climate. Pretty much everything but the north stand of the east-pointing horseshoe was demolished and replaced.
The Huskies played the 2012 season at CenturyLink, and moved into the revamped, 70,138-seat Husky Stadium for the 2013 season. Rutgers University will play its 1st game of the 2016 football game against Washington here, on Saturday, September 3. 3800 Montlake Blvd. NE, at Pacific Street. Light Rail to University of Washington Station.
* Edmundson Pavilion. Adjacent to Husky Stadium, at 3870 Montlake, is Alaska Airlines Arena at Clarence S. "Hec" Edmundson Pavilion, the home of "U-Dub" basketball since 1927. Hec was the school's longtime basketball and track coach, and "Hec Ed" hosted the NCAA Final Four in 1949 (Kentucky over Oklahoma A&M, the school now known as Oklahoma State) and 1952 (Kansas over St. John's). It has also hosted the State of Washington's high school basketball finals.
UW has been to the Final Four only once, in 1953, although they've won the regular-season title in the league now called the Pac-12 11 times, including 2012; and the Conference Tournament 3 times, most recently in 2011. Washington State, across the State in Pullman, reached the Championship Game in 1941, but hasn't been back to the Final Four since.
The Kingdome hosted the Final Four in 1984, Georgetown over Houston; 1989, Michigan over Seton Hall; and 1995, UCLA over Arkansas. It also hosted 3 U.S. soccer team matches: A win, a loss, and a draw; and Soccer Bowl '76, a 3-0 win by the Toronto Metros over the Minnesota Kicks.
* Tacoma Dome. The Sonics used this building during the 1994-95 season, as the Seattle Center Coliseum was demolished and the KeyArena put up in its place. Opening in 1983, it seats 17,100, and its most common use has been for minor-league hockey and concerts. 2727 East D Street, about 32 miles south of downtown Seattle. It can be reached from downtown Seattle by Bus 590, 592, 594 or 595, and it would take about 45 minutes.
Tacoma is also the home of Cheney Stadium, home of the Tacoma Rainiers of the Pacific Coast League, named for the former PCL team, the Seattle Rainiers. It is also the home of OL Reign of the National Women's Soccer League. Formerly known as the Seattle Reign, they are now owned by Olympique Lyonnaise of French soccer. 2502 S. Tyler Street.
The night Elvis sang at Sick's Stadium, September 1, 1957, he gave an afternoon concert in Tacoma, at the Lincoln Bowl, the football stadium of Lincoln High School. 707 S. 37th Street. The day before, he sang across the State, at Memorial Stadium in Spokane. He returned to Spokane to sing at their Coliseum on April 28, 1973 and April 27, 1976.
The Spokane Coliseum, at Boone Street and Howard Avenue, seated 5,400, lasted from 1954 to 1995, and was replaced by the 12,200-seat Spokane Veterans Memorial Arena, across the street. It's home to minor-league hockey's Spokane Chiefs, who, despite not being in Canada, won their junior hockey championship, the Memorial Cup, in 1991 and 2008. 720 W. Mallon Avenue. Spokane is 280 miles east of Seattle.
* Seattle Ice Arena. The Seattle Metropolitans played in the Pacific Coast Hockey Association from 1915 to the league's folding in 1926, and won 5 league championships: 1917, 1919, 1920, 1922 and 1924. In 1917, they defeated the National Hockey Association champion Montreal Canadiens, and became the 1st American team to win the Stanley Cup. This would be Seattle's only world title in any sport for 62 years.
They played at the Seattle Ice Arena, which seated only 4,000 people, and was demolished in 1963. The IBM Building, a typically tacky piece of 1960s architecture, now stands on the site. 1200 Fifth Avenue at University Avenue, downtown.
* Seattle Center, Key Arena and Climate Pledge Arena. Erected for the 1962 World's Fair (as seen in the Elvis film It Happened At the World's Fair), Seattle Center, north of the sports complex at 400 Broad St. at John St., includes the city's trademark, the Space Needle. Admission is $22, less than the cost of the Empire State Building, and it's open 'til 11:00 PM, with great views of the region's natural splendor.
Seattle Center also has the Pacific Science Center (think of it the Northwest's version of the American Museum of Natural History and its Hayden Planetarium), the Science Fiction Museum and Hall of Fame (not sure why Seattle was chosen as the Hall's location, although the city is a major aerospace center).
Also in this complex is Memorial Stadium, a high school football stadium built in 1946. It used to host the old North American Soccer League version of the Sounders, and now hosts the women's soccer team, the Seattle Reign. On June 24, 1975, it hosted a game between the national teams of the U.S. and Poland, ending in a draw.
Also in this complex is the site of the arena that was once home to the NBA's SuperSonics and the WNBA's Seattle Storm. The Storm's Sue Bird and Lauren Jackson were named to the NBA's 20th Anniversary 20 Greatest Players in 2016. A high school football stadium is also on the site. Number 33 bus, although the nearest Link station is several blocks' walk away.
The 1st arena on the site, the Seattle Center Coliseum, stood from 1962 to 1994. Elvis sang there on November 12, 1970; April 29, 1973 (2 shows); and April 26, 1976. The 2nd, the KeyArena, stood from 1995 until last year. In 2021, it reopened as the home of the NHL expansion team, the Seattle Kraken.
The night Elvis sang at Sick's Stadium, September 1, 1957, he gave an afternoon concert in Tacoma, at the Lincoln Bowl, the football stadium of Lincoln High School. 707 S. 37th Street. The day before, he sang across the State, at Memorial Stadium in Spokane. He returned to Spokane to sing at their Coliseum on April 28, 1973 and April 27, 1976.
The Spokane Coliseum, at Boone Street and Howard Avenue, seated 5,400, lasted from 1954 to 1995, and was replaced by the 12,200-seat Spokane Veterans Memorial Arena, across the street. It's home to minor-league hockey's Spokane Chiefs, who, despite not being in Canada, won their junior hockey championship, the Memorial Cup, in 1991 and 2008. 720 W. Mallon Avenue. Spokane is 280 miles east of Seattle.
They played at the Seattle Ice Arena, which seated only 4,000 people, and was demolished in 1963. The IBM Building, a typically tacky piece of 1960s architecture, now stands on the site. 1200 Fifth Avenue at University Avenue, downtown.
There was also a hockey team named the Seattle Seahawks, competing in the North West Hockey League from 1933 to 1936, winning its championship in 1936; and then in the Pacific Coast Hockey League until 1941. Frank Foyston, who starred for the Metropolitans, was their 1st coach and their 1st general manager.
Seattle Center also has the Pacific Science Center (think of it the Northwest's version of the American Museum of Natural History and its Hayden Planetarium), the Science Fiction Museum and Hall of Fame (not sure why Seattle was chosen as the Hall's location, although the city is a major aerospace center).
Also in this complex is Memorial Stadium, a high school football stadium built in 1946. It used to host the old North American Soccer League version of the Sounders, and now hosts the women's soccer team, the Seattle Reign. On June 24, 1975, it hosted a game between the national teams of the U.S. and Poland, ending in a draw.
Also in this complex is the site of the arena that was once home to the NBA's SuperSonics and the WNBA's Seattle Storm. The Storm's Sue Bird and Lauren Jackson were named to the NBA's 20th Anniversary 20 Greatest Players in 2016. A high school football stadium is also on the site. Number 33 bus, although the nearest Link station is several blocks' walk away.
On May 12, 2014, the New York Times printed a story that shows NBA fandom by ZIP Code, according to Facebook likes. With the loss of the Sonics, Seattle fans not only refused to accept their former heroes as Oklahoma City Thunder (Thunders? Thundermen?), but also refused to accept the next-closest team, their former arch-rivals, the Portland Trail Blazers, 171 miles away, as their new team. They seem to divide their fandom 4 ways, none of which should surprise you: The Chicago Bulls, the Los Angeles Lakers, the Boston Celtics and the Miami Heat. But if Seattle should ever get another team, these fans would certainly get behind the new Sonics.
At 967 feet high, Columbia Center, a.k.a. The Black Tower, is the tallest building in the Northwest, and, for the moment, the tallest building in North America west of the Rocky Mountains except for the U.S. Bank Tower in Los Angeles. (A building going up in San Francisco, and another in Los Angeles, are both expected to top the Black Tower by 2017.) If you're wondering about Seattle's most famous icon, the Space Needle was once the tallest structure west of the Mississippi River, but at 605 feet it is well short of the Black Tower.
Aside from Seattle Center and its Space Needle, and the stadiums, Seattle's best-known structure is the Pike Place Market. Think of it as their version of the South Street Seaport and Fulton Fish Market. (Or Philadelphia's Reading Terminal Market, Baltimore's Harborplace, or Boston's Quincy Market/Faneuil Hall.) It includes the 1st-ever Starbucks store, which is still open. Downtown, 85 Pike Street at Western Avenue.
If Seattle ever got a new NBA team, it would rank 17th among NBA metro areas in population. It would also rank 17th in the NHL. Until the new NHL team begins play, the closest NHL team is the Vancouver Canucks, 144 miles away. According to an article in the January 8, 2016 edition of Business Insider, the Canucks are the most popular NHL team in the State of Washington.
Aside from the Pacific Science Center and the Science Fiction Museum, Seattle isn't a big museum city, although the Seattle Art Museum, at 1300 1st Avenue at University Street, might be worth a visit.
The State of Washington has never produced a President, so there's no Presidential Library. Senator Henry M. "Scoop" Jackson ran for the Democratic nomination in 1972 and 1976, but didn't get particularly close. The State's never produced a Vice President, either. Thomas S. Foley served a District centered on Spokane in Congress from 1965 to 1995, and was Speaker of the House of Representatives from 1989 to 1995.
The TV show Northern Exposure was filmed in the State of Washington, and Twin Peaks was both filmed and set there: The former in Roslyn (hence, Roslyn's Cafe), about 85 miles southeast of downtown Seattle; the latter in North Bend, about 30 miles east. The science-fiction series Dark Angel, which vaulted Jessica Alba and NCIS' Michael Weatherly to stardom, was set in a dystopian future Seattle, but was filmed in Vancouver. So was The X-Files. So was Millennium. So was Kyle XY. So was Smallville, but that wasn't meant to be Seattle.
Arrow, about another superhero, was filmed in Vancouver, and, perhaps due to Green Arrow wearing a green costume, I've often thought of his hometown of Star City as being DC Comics' analogue for Seattle. While Frasier was set in Seattle, and Grey's Anatomy still is, there were hardly any location shots. The same is true for Here Come the Brides, The 4400 and iCarly.
The most obvious film made and set in Seattle is Sleepless in Seattle, and the city was home to Matthew Broderick's and Ally Sheedy's characters in WarGames (in which Broderick's computer hacking has much greater consequences than it would 3 years later in the Chicago-based Ferris Bueller's Day Off).
Singles came along in 1992, at the height of grunge and the rise of Starbucks, which helped make Seattle the hippest city in the country in the years of George Bush the father and Bill Clinton's 1st term -- or, as Jason Alexander put it shortly thereafter on Seinfeld, "It's the pesto of cities." It also reminded us of how good an actor Matt Dillon is, how gorgeous Kyra Sedgwick is, and that Bridget Fonda (daughter of Peter, niece of Jane and granddaughter of Henry) and Campbell Scott (son of George C. and Colleen Dewhurst) were worthy of their genes.
There's also been It Happened at the World's Fair (Elvis playing a visitor to the 1962 Fair), McQ
(John Wayne as a present-day cop in one of his last films, in 1974), The Parallax View, Stakeout, Black Widow, The Fabulous Baker Boys, My Own Private Idaho, The Hand That Rocks the Cradle, The Crush, Harry and the Hendersons, 10 Things I Hate About You, Agent Cody Banks, and the Fifty Shades series. An Officer and a Gentleman was filmed at the naval base in nearby Bremerton.
In spite of all the rain it gets, Seattle has a beach! Alki Beach is on a peninsula that forms West Seattle, and the ferries to Bremerton and Bainbridge pass in front of it. 1702 Alki Avenue SW, about 6 road miles from Pioneer Square. Bus 56.
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At 967 feet high, Columbia Center, a.k.a. The Black Tower, is the tallest building in the Northwest, and, for the moment, the tallest building in North America west of the Rocky Mountains except for the U.S. Bank Tower in Los Angeles. (A building going up in San Francisco, and another in Los Angeles, are both expected to top the Black Tower by 2017.) If you're wondering about Seattle's most famous icon, the Space Needle was once the tallest structure west of the Mississippi River, but at 605 feet it is well short of the Black Tower.
Aside from Seattle Center and its Space Needle, and the stadiums, Seattle's best-known structure is the Pike Place Market. Think of it as their version of the South Street Seaport and Fulton Fish Market. (Or Philadelphia's Reading Terminal Market, Baltimore's Harborplace, or Boston's Quincy Market/Faneuil Hall.) It includes the 1st-ever Starbucks store, which is still open. Downtown, 85 Pike Street at Western Avenue.
If Seattle ever got a new NBA team, it would rank 17th among NBA metro areas in population. It would also rank 17th in the NHL. Until the new NHL team begins play, the closest NHL team is the Vancouver Canucks, 144 miles away. According to an article in the January 8, 2016 edition of Business Insider, the Canucks are the most popular NHL team in the State of Washington.
Aside from the Pacific Science Center and the Science Fiction Museum, Seattle isn't a big museum city, although the Seattle Art Museum, at 1300 1st Avenue at University Street, might be worth a visit.
The State of Washington has never produced a President, so there's no Presidential Library. Senator Henry M. "Scoop" Jackson ran for the Democratic nomination in 1972 and 1976, but didn't get particularly close. The State's never produced a Vice President, either. Thomas S. Foley served a District centered on Spokane in Congress from 1965 to 1995, and was Speaker of the House of Representatives from 1989 to 1995.
The TV show Northern Exposure was filmed in the State of Washington, and Twin Peaks was both filmed and set there: The former in Roslyn (hence, Roslyn's Cafe), about 85 miles southeast of downtown Seattle; the latter in North Bend, about 30 miles east. The science-fiction series Dark Angel, which vaulted Jessica Alba and NCIS' Michael Weatherly to stardom, was set in a dystopian future Seattle, but was filmed in Vancouver. So was The X-Files. So was Millennium. So was Kyle XY. So was Smallville, but that wasn't meant to be Seattle.
Arrow, about another superhero, was filmed in Vancouver, and, perhaps due to Green Arrow wearing a green costume, I've often thought of his hometown of Star City as being DC Comics' analogue for Seattle. While Frasier was set in Seattle, and Grey's Anatomy still is, there were hardly any location shots. The same is true for Here Come the Brides, The 4400 and iCarly.
The most obvious film made and set in Seattle is Sleepless in Seattle, and the city was home to Matthew Broderick's and Ally Sheedy's characters in WarGames (in which Broderick's computer hacking has much greater consequences than it would 3 years later in the Chicago-based Ferris Bueller's Day Off).
Singles came along in 1992, at the height of grunge and the rise of Starbucks, which helped make Seattle the hippest city in the country in the years of George Bush the father and Bill Clinton's 1st term -- or, as Jason Alexander put it shortly thereafter on Seinfeld, "It's the pesto of cities." It also reminded us of how good an actor Matt Dillon is, how gorgeous Kyra Sedgwick is, and that Bridget Fonda (daughter of Peter, niece of Jane and granddaughter of Henry) and Campbell Scott (son of George C. and Colleen Dewhurst) were worthy of their genes.
There's also been It Happened at the World's Fair (Elvis playing a visitor to the 1962 Fair), McQ
(John Wayne as a present-day cop in one of his last films, in 1974), The Parallax View, Stakeout, Black Widow, The Fabulous Baker Boys, My Own Private Idaho, The Hand That Rocks the Cradle, The Crush, Harry and the Hendersons, 10 Things I Hate About You, Agent Cody Banks, and the Fifty Shades series. An Officer and a Gentleman was filmed at the naval base in nearby Bremerton.
In spite of all the rain it gets, Seattle has a beach! Alki Beach is on a peninsula that forms West Seattle, and the ferries to Bremerton and Bainbridge pass in front of it. 1702 Alki Avenue SW, about 6 road miles from Pioneer Square. Bus 56.
So, if you can afford it, go on out and join your fellow Yankee Fans in taking over the Mariners' ballpark. And if they bring up 1995, feel free to bring up 2000 and 2001.
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