Seattle Mariners: History Of Mariners Opening Day

Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports

The time is finally here. Today is the Mariners Opening Day. But before we look forward to what hopes to be an exciting season of Mariners baseball, we take a look back. Let’s travel back and see how this team has done historically on Opening Day and try to derive what that means for potential success of the team.

The Mariners are 23-14 on Opening Day since the clubs inception in 1977. They have won the last seven years in a row. This year marks the 6th straight year the M’s will open on the road, (2012 opened in Japan and the game was considered a “road” game) but the first time in five years they will play someone other than Oakland.

On Opening Day, the Mariners have played 10 different teams. Here is how they have fared against each:

[table id=3 /]

The Mariners are 16-9 in home games on Opening Day and 7-5 in road games.

So 2014 will mark the 10th time the Angels and Mariners have squared off on Opening Day, but only the 3rd time IN Los Angeles.

The last time the Mariners opened the season in LA, Brian Holman beat Bert Blyleven in a 7-4 victory over the Angels. The year was 1990.

Ken Griffey Jr. went 4-for-5 with a homer and 3 RBI. Dave Valle was 3-for-4 with 2 RBI and Edgar Martinez, playing third base and batting 7th in the lineup, went 2-for-4 with an RBI and a run scored.

They wouldn’t win again for six nights, dropping five straight games, three of them by shutout, two of them blowouts.

That year, the Mariners would go on to win 77 games and finish 5th in the AL West. You really can’t derive much from Opening Day as it pertains to final record.

That’s one of the great mysteries of baseball. It’s so hard to predict because so much can happen over a 162-game schedule.

Baseball is a game built around failure. A Hall of Fame hitter will cause an out 70% of the time. The best teams lose 40-45% of their games, winning just barely more than they lose.

But on Opening Day, everyone is in first place. And if you win that first game, you separate yourself from half the league. You are one step closer to that ultimate goal of winning the World Series.

So sit back, enjoy these early moments of Spring. Because as Mariners fans we know, the feeling may not last.

But we can enjoy the ride while it lasts.

Happy Opening Day everyone.