The man of magical moments isn’t the next Ken Griffey Jr. He wants to write his own story—beginning with ending Seattle’s playoff drought.
On Sept. 11, the Mariners trail the Braves in the bottom of the ninth. They’ve already blown a 6–1 lead in front of a rowdy, near-capacity home crowd. Many in attendance have returned to T-Mobile Park only recently, flush with cautious optimism born from knowing better while they reach for their maxed-out emotional credit cards once more.
If the playoffs started today, the Mariners would be in, ending the longest playoff drought in professional sports.