Today is the big day for Seattle’s biggest-ever baseball season.
The eyes of the world are on Safeco Field as the All-Star Game begins at 5 p.m. in what should be a sunny, warm summer evening in Seattle.
Baseball can’t stop smiling on Seattle this year:
* The Mariners are baseball’s best team with a phenomenal 63-24 record going into the all-star break.
* A playoff berth is almost assured. (Baseball players and hard-core fans are too superstitious to mention a World Series berth — yet.)
* The Mariners have the most players — eight — on an all-star team in 41 years.
* And the All-Star Game will be showcased in the gorgeous confines of what some aficionados say is baseball’s best park because of its great seating and the retractable roof that prevents rainouts.
So the baseball world is welcomed to the Pacific Northwest.
And the more, the Mariner.
Four Seattle players were elected to start: first baseman John Olerud, second baseman Bret Boone, outfielder Ichiro Suzuki and designated hitter Edgar Martinez.
Pitchers Freddy Garcia and Kazuhiro Sasaki were picked among the original reserves, and reliever Jeff Nelson was added to the roster on Saturday, replacing Yankees closer Mariano Rivera.
The eighth Mariner all-star is outfielder Mike Cameron, who was selected Sunday to replace Tampa Bay’s injured Greg Vaughn.
All-Star Game coverage appears in today’s Peninsula Daily News, available throughout Clallam and Jefferson counties. Click onto “Subscribe” to have the PDN delivered to your home or office.
