Totally no surprise: the Seattle Mariners and the Tacoma Rainiers extended their player development contract through the 2022 season.
Tacoma Rainiers Team President Aaron Artman and Seattle Mariners Director of Player Development Andy McKay made the announcement.
The partnership between Tacoma and Seattle has been in place since 1995, making their affiliation one of the strongest and longest-lasting affiliate relationships in baseball. The Rainiers 2019 season will be the 25th year as the Mariners top minor league affiliate. During that span Tacoma has posted an all-time record of 1,741-1,690 (.507).
“This has always been a great relationship,” Tacoma Rainiers owner Mikal Thomsen said. “Our fans in Tacoma and I are all Mariners fans, so it is a natural thing to follow players on both teams from the fan standpoint. On the business side, the Mariners — to a person and as an organization — have been great to work with, and we look forward to maintaining this affiliation far into the future.”
Since joining the Seattle organization, Tacoma has collected five division titles, three conference championships, and two Pacific Coast League Championships (2001, 2010). Rainiers players and field staff have also accumulated numerous awards over the course of the affiliation, including 47 mid-season all-star selections, one PCL Pitcher of the Year, two PCL Rookies of the Year, three PCL Mangers of the Year, five league ERA champions, and one league strikeout champion.
“The Mariners are excited to be able to extend our relationship with the Rainiers,” McKay said. “The Rainiers have consistently demonstrated their commitment to providing the best possible environment for our prospects to develop, as well as providing an opportunity for baseball fans in the Pacific Northwest to meet the next generation of Mariners.”
You can read more about the current state of affiliations on our Affiliate Dance page. We expect a number of player development contracts to be renewed in the coming week, but there are always intriguing openings at every level of baseball. As you can see on the Affiliate Dance page, we’re now at the point where MLB and MiLB teams can search for new affiliation options, so there’s always a shuffle of sorts at the end of the season.