At 2:28 p.m. on Tuesday, a Seattle Mariners employee attached a camera to a wall beside Eugenio Suárez’s locker at T-Mobile Park, just in case there was a celebration to come. On the opposite end, Josh Naylor petted Tucker – the team’s lab/retriever mix – while wearing a Mariners hockey jersey with his nickname, “Naylz,” printed on the back. Up the tunnel, Jorge Polanco rocketed line drives to Ichiro in right field.
What a difference six months make.
Six months ago, Naylor and Suárez were Arizona Diamondbacks. The Mariners lineup, meanwhile, was familiarly flawed, with holes the size of icebergs on their infield.
Six months ago, Polanco was billed as the Mariners’ starting third baseman, despite making just 24 appearances at the position in 11 MLB campaigns. He was a switch-hitter who was temporarily limited to the left side, thanks to an oblique strain that persisted into the season. He was a damning contradiction, both the Mariners’ biggest “addition” and one of their worst players from the previous season.
Six months ago, Cal Raleigh was just a catcher, not a phenomenon. Ken Griffey Jr. was the Mariners’ single-season home run king.
Six months ago, Gabe Speier and Eduard Bazardo were questionable at best. Speier’s 2024 season was submarined by injuries, as his ERA ballooned to 5.70. Bazardo, too, was a seemingly replaceable 29-year-old reliever with a 4.88 ERA in 2024.
Six months ago, Dominic Canzone was an afterthought. After all, Seattle’s outfield seemed set – with Randy Arozarena, Julio Rodríguez and Víctor Robles cementing starting spots. Canzone, who slashed just .196/.271/.381 in 2024, was destined to start the season at Triple-A Tacoma.
In an elevator at a stadium in Arizona this spring, I heard a fan incorrectly call him “Dominic Calzone.”
It’s safe to assume they know his name now.
“If I’m going to be completely honest, it’s something I didn’t quite envision,” Canzone said Tuesday night of his Triple-A detour. “That was tough to take to heart. But just to be a part of this team, let alone contributing, it’s been a special year. I can’t even put it into words. We’ve got a long way to go, but it’s just so special. I’m never going to take any of these moments for granted.”
Six months ago, the Mariners were covered in question marks.
Now, it’s Champagne.
That’s thanks in part to Naylor, whose three-RBI double in the eighth inning of Tuesday’s 4-3 win over the Colorado Rockies sent Seattle to the postseason for the first time since 2022.
In the aftermath, an employee handed out ski goggles for the Champagne shower. As the plastic-wrapped room erupted with beer, bubbly and billowing cigar smoke, Raleigh hugged president of baseball operations Jerry Dipoto and told him, “Let’s go win a World Series.” Starting pitcher Luis Castillo poured an entire bucket of ice water on 73-year-old infield coach Perry “Bone” Hill’s bald head. Rodríguez and J.P. Crawford scream-sang the words to Kid Cudi’s “Mr. Rager,” while Arozarena poured a beer to the beat.
With Seattle so close it can taste its first division title since 2001, there are surely more celebrations to come.
Raleigh, of course, deserves every column inch he has received this season. Julio, Arozarena, Andrés Muñoz, Matt Brash and a resilient starting staff have played their parts as well.
But the Mariners do not get here without question marks that elevated into exclamation points. They do not get here without Polanco, who has become the player they thought they traded for in 2024. The 32-year-old switch-hitting second baseman managed just 11 doubles in 118 games last season.
So far, he’s hit 13 doubles this September alone.
They do not get here without Speier (2.59 ERA in 73 games) and Bazardo (2.34 ERA in 70 games), both of whom have stabilized Seattle’s bullpen. For much of the season, Speier did so as Seattle’s lone lefty. Despite the Mariners’ inability to acquire another leverage arm at the trade deadline, Speier and Bazardo have risen into those roles.
They do not get here without Canzone, whose batting average has jumped more than 100 points (from .196 to .297) in 2025. With Robles and Luke Raley missing significant time because of injuries, Canzone – once the Mariners’ forgotten man – has earned a platoon role in right field. On Tuesday he cranked a 108.2-mph solo homer to start Seattle’s scoring.
Heck, they do not get here without Leo Rivas, Cole Young and Harry Ford – more Triple-A Tacoma transplants – each of whom delivered walkoff wins. Or Emerson Hancock and Logan Evans, who ate innings for an injured starting staff. Or Ben Williamson, who appeared in 85 games at third base before the Suárez trade.
They do not get here without Dipoto and general manager Justin Hollander, who (mostly) addressed their question marks in July.
They do not get here without the whole.
“I think it’s just 28 guys who believe in each other and care about each other,” Hollander said Tuesday night, with a pair of ski goggles tilted atop his head. “They care about doing the right thing every day. They work their butts off every day. And they’re incredibly talented on top of it.”
At 3:44 p.m. Tuesday, I shared another elevator in a baseball stadium, this time with a cart carrying seven cases of Gruet sparkling wine. The preparations were already underway.
What a difference six months make.
What about one more?
“Best ballclub. Best camaraderie,” Canzone said, holding a beer in one hand and a cigar in the other. “This is the group, and we’re looking to go all the way.”