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The Mariners were added to the American League in 1977, and were for many years perennial non-achievers. Despite having stars such as Alvin Davis and Gaylord Perry, the Mariners did not have a winning record until 19911991 like 2002, is a palindromic year. It also has the same calendar as 2002, including Easter on March 31. It is a common year starting on Tuesday. Events January January 2 Sharon Pratt Dixon is sworn in as mayor of Washington, DC becoming the first blac.
By the mid 1990s, under manager Lou PiniellaLou Piniella (born August 28, 1943 in Tampa, Florida) is a former Major League Baseball player and current manager of the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. Piniella began his professional playing career after the Cleveland Indians signed him as an amateur free agent, the Mariners added a core of strong players built around center-fielder Ken Griffey, Jr.George Kenneth Griffey, Jr. born November 21, 1969 in Donora, Pennsylvania) is an American Major League Baseball player. He was raised in Cincinnati, Ohio, where his father, Ken Griffey, Sr. played most of his best years with the Cincinnati Reds. The youn, pitcher Randy JohnsonRandall David "Randy" Johnson (born September 10, 1963 in Walnut Creek, California) is a left-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball. He is most noted for his stature (at 6'10" (2. 08 m), he is the tallest player to ever play in the Majors) and one of th and designated hitter Edgar MartinezEdgar Martinez (born January 2, 1963 in New York, New York) is a longtime Major League Baseball player who retired at the end of the 2004 season. He spent his entire major-league career with the Seattle Mariners, a team in the American League West divisio. They won their first division title in 1995, having trailed the California Angels by 13 games in mid-August. Their dramatic championship run that year was halted in the ALCS by the Cleveland Indians. The Mariners won the division title again in 1997.
In 2001, despite the loss of superstar shortstop Alex Rodriguez, the addition of Japanese sensation Ichiro Suzuki helped the Mariners to have one of the most successful regular seasons on record, leading the major leagues in winning percentage from start to finish, easily winning the American League West championship, setting a new American League record for most wins in a single season (116), and matching the major league record for single season wins set by the Chicago Cubs in 1906. They pulled off a come-from-behind 3-2 series win over the Cleveland Indians in the ALDS to advance to the American League Championship Series against the New York Yankees, but succumbed to the Yankees for the second year in a row in the ALCS, 4 games to 1.
At the end of the 2002 season, manager Lou Piniella left the Mariners to manage the Tampa Bay Devil Rays over the management policy of non-aggressive hiring. The Mariners signed Bob Melvin to be their new manager. Despite an excellent start to the 2003 season, the Mariners failed to make the playoffs.
The Mariners stayed competitive in 7 of the 9 seasons from 1995 to 2003. The 2004 season, however, saw the demise of the Mariners' dominance of their division. Although many of their players were aging, the Mariners continued an apparent practice of "content to contend," starting the 2004 season having not made a major deal in three years. Despite this fact, many experts figured the Mariners would be a contending team, but one that would not win the World Series. The team lost their first five games and went into the All-Star Break with a 9-game losing streak, a 32-54 season record (.372), and a 17-game deficit behind the first-place Texas Rangers.
After the All-Star break, the Mariners stopped ignoring that a crisis was on their hands, and started giving the team a complete overhaul, moving aging but proven players away from center stage and inserting over a dozen call-ups onto the 25-man roster. The Mariners' woes still continue, however, but instead of futile brooding on the aging of the team, the bad play can be improved through training of these young players, few who are even 25 yet. The season's end was enlivened by Ichiro breaking George Sisler's single season record of 257 hits, and events to honor the retirement of Mariner stalwart, Edgar Martinez. Just days after the end of the season, the Mariners fired Bob Melvin.
On October 20, 2004, the Mariners announced the signing of their new manager, Mike Hargrove. Hargrove was the manager who led the Cleveland Indians past the Mariners in the 1995 ALCS.
In 2004, Japanese video game manufacturer Nintendo acquired a majority ownership in the team.
230px Ichiro Suzuki joined the Mariners in 2001