Seattle Mariners Icon Felix Hernandez Explains Why He Was So Loyal to Franchise

The Seattle Mariners past is very involved with the present of the franchise.
It's not uncommon to see Hall of Famers like Ichiro Suzuki and Ken Griffey Jr. around the team. Longtime catcher Dan Wilson is the current manager and National Baseball Hall of Famer Edgar Martinez is the team's Senior Director of Hitting Strategy.
Seattle has been fortunate to have several great players who are willing to give back and that was evident on Wednesday.
Former Cy Young-winning pitcher Felix Hernandez met with 2024 All-Star and current Mariners closer Andres Munoz at a restaurant called Jamón Ibérico Pata Negra last season in Miami. The video was shared on Jan. 29 by the Seattle Mariners on "X" (formerly known as Twitter) showing the two talking about their respective careers and pitching in general. In the clip shared to social media, Hernandez talked about the love showed to him by the fans:
"It wasn't just the fans, it was the entire city," Hernandez said. "Seattle really showed me love, everywhere I went, and respect. It's not just that they showed their support, tell you that they love you, but they give you your space and respect you. That's what I liked about Seattle.
Munoz mentioned fans wishing Hernandez a "Happy Felix Day," during his playing days, which referred to when it was Hernandez's turn to start in the rotation.
Munoz had a funny response, as he's unable to get a "Happy Munoz Day" greeting.
"They can't do that with us because we don't know when we're going to pitch," Munoz said. "
.@RealKingFelix and Andrés Muñoz linked up at Jamón Ibérico Pata Negra restaurant in Miami last season to chat about pitching and reflect on their big-league careers.
— Seattle Mariners (@Mariners) January 30, 2025
Watch the full video ➡️ https://t.co/FGf5o6vLMm#WheelsUp | @AlaskaAir pic.twitter.com/hqJKOOBmWm
The whole video of the interaction between Hernandez and Munoz can be found on YouTube.com.
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