If there’s ever a moment to get carried away, it felt appropriate that it’s with this team, and at this time.
The Seattle Mariners embraced that idea Tuesday night, celebrating their return to the playoffs in a cloud of cigar smoke, bear hugs and beer chugs abound inside the home clubhouse.
In the middle of the madness, each of them soaked in champagne, Cal Raleigh bumped into Jerry Dipoto. The Mariners catcher put a finger to the team president’s chest and brought to life the one overarching idea bubbling around the room.
“Let’s go win a World Series,” Raleigh told him.
It’s easy to get carried away with the potential of these Mariners, whose September surge includes 15 wins in their last 16 games and a resounding sweep of their most hated rival, the Astros, in Houston over the weekend to claim control of the AL West.
On Wednesday night, the Mariners can clinch their first division title in 24 years.
And they aren’t satisfied with that.
Raleigh has talked openly about not only delivering to Seattle the first World Series but multiple championships.
“We’re not done yet,” Raleigh said inside the clubhouse. “Obviously, enjoy this moment and celebrate. But we’ve got bigger things on the horizon, hopefully.”
Yes, he’s getting carried away, and he wants to carry an entire fanbase with him.
“It means a lot to the city, this organization. It’s been through a lot, and these last few years have felt really long,” Raleigh said. “It’s been hurtful and a lot of pain, but tonight’s a good night, and we’re gonna enjoy it.”
In Raleigh and Julio Rodríguez, the Mariners have baseball’s best catcher and best center fielder, and one of the sport’s best supporting casts around them.
Both stars are locked up long-term — through at least 2029, and potentially through 2031 together — and they’ve embraced this city and this team’s potential.
Eugenio Suárez, the veteran third baseman, played with both Raleigh and Rodríguez during their first full season in 2022.
“They make this thing better. They are the face of this organization,” Suárez said. “It’s unbelievable what they’ve been doing. You look at Cal and what he’s doing, inside and outside of the field. I’m so happy for them, and I feel so glad to be part of that, too.”
The failures of the past two seasons, when the Mariners missed a playoff berth by one game each year, has hardened this year. They know what they’re capable of, and there’s an earned edge to them now.
“Those years served its purpose to get us stronger, to get us in a better position to grow,” Rodríguez said. “I feel like that’s something that’s happened with those years and now we’re here.”