Saturday Marked Anniversary of Franchise-Altering Decision For Seattle Mariners
The Seattle Mariners had to watch the playoffs from home for the 22nd time in 23 years this past October.
The Mariners' postseason fate has come down to the final week of the season each of the last four years. But before 2022, the only postseason success fans could hold on to was the late-1990s and early 2000s team that featured current manager Dan Wilson and baseball Hall of Famers Ken Griffey Jr. and Edgar Martinez.
And Saturday marked the anniversary of the hiring of the manager that oversaw all of those teams.
Seattle hired Lou Piniella on manager 32 years ago on Nov. 9, 1992.
Piniella was a manager for 25 seasons with the New York Yankees, Cincinnati Reds, Mariners, Tampa Bay Devil Rays and Chicago Cubs in that order.
Piniella managed Seattle from 1993-2002 and led the team to its most successful seasons in franchise history.
Under Piniella's guidance, the Mariners made the American League Championship Series three times in 1995, 2000 and 2001. Until former manager Scott Servais oversaw the team's playoff season in 2022, the franchise's only playoff berths were under Piniella.
Lou Piniella going absolutely CRAZY while Griffey and Jay Buhner are in the outfield laughing 😂 pic.twitter.com/4g2eiCd8Oq
— Baseball’s Greatest Moments (@BBGreatMoments) November 2, 2024
Piniella won Manager of the Year twice with Seattle in 1995 and 2001.
The multi-decade skipper managed some of the greatest players in team history, including Martinez, Wilson, Griffey Jr., Ichiro Suzuki, Alex Rodriguez, Randy Johnson and Jamie Moyer.
Piniella was used for his impassioned management style and often got into arguments with umpires that included some emotional reactions.
Those reactions included (but were not limited to) base-throwing and dirt-kicking.
As the team remembers the years under Piniella's rein, the hope is now that one of his former players and current team manager, Wilson, will create some memories for himself.
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