I don’t do this every season, but apparently I did it last year around this time, so why not run it back again?

This part of the year always finds me with a lot of dread. The baseball season is too damn long and there’s never enough time away from it to properly miss it. As such, I can NEVER bring myself to actually look forward to the start of a new season. It’s more of a reluctant acceptance as Spring Training rears its ugly head and the baseball superfans in the area try their damnedest to get our juices flowing.

This year more than others of late has me searching high and low for a reason to give a damn. Unlike 2018 or 2017, there’s no promise of contention in 2019. Not that we had any delusions of playing for a divisional title with the Astros being the ASTROS!, but even the minimal charge of a wild card appears to be out of the question before we’ve even stepped onto any sort of baseball field. “Contending” for this team would be the flukiest of flukes.

But, as a Mariners fan, that doesn’t mean I get to pack up my fandom and go home. I can’t bury my head in the sand; I have to sit here and watch this team, hoping and praying that we see enough improvement out of our young players to at least grasp at some straws heading into 2020.

This isn’t a post about that. Rather, it’s a post looking at some of the cool free shit the Mariners are set to give us with the purchase of a ticket. This is by no means a comprehensive list. I’m not going through each and every give-away; just the ones that interest me. Even then, it’s not comprehensive, as I’m sure there are ones that I may have missed; and there will be impromptu give-aways that happen during the season that may not even be a glimmer in the eyes of the promotions department. Without further ado …

3/28 – Opening Day Magnetic Schedule. I try to go to this one every year, because it’s Opening Day and because I love magnets on my fridge.

4/12 – Mariners Hoodie. There’s no pic yet, but I like hoodies, so I could see this being something worth going out for.

4/26 – Fanny Pack. I went to the game last year that featured a fanny pack, but they were all out by the time I got to the stadium. When I saw one, they looked kinda chintzy, so I’m not going to say this is a Must Have or anything. But, I wouldn’t throw it out of bed if I got one.

4/27 – Mitch Haniger Bobblehead. I recently bought the guy’s jersey, mostly because I really like the style of the new Spring Training jerseys, and the only other player they had was Ichiro, so I took a chance on the guy with higher upside going forward over the sure thing from a bygone era; as such, I guess I better become a big Haniger fan and hope he makes a bunch of All Star Games for the Mariners.

5/17 – Trucker Hat. Again, probably not a Must Have, but I like hats. Unfortunately, my head is gigantic, so I don’t fit into very many adjustable caps. Fingers crossed, if this one crosses my path.

5/18 – Ken Griffey Jr. Rookie Bobblehead. The Mariners didn’t retain very many good, popular players of old, so it’s slim pickins in the bobblehead department. By my count, there’s going to be 4 such nights in 2019, and two of them are Hall of Famers. I’ve already got three Griffey bobbleheads, so I’m not going out of my way to get this one, but I bet it’ll be cool looking.

6/21 – Lou-Au Hawaiian Shirt. This is the first give-away I’m really stoked on. I HAVE TO HAVE THIS SHIRT! I will do whatever it takes to get there early and wear this with pride.

6/22 – Seattle Pilots Throwback Cap. I love me some throwback hats, but as I noted with the Trucker Hat game, adjustable caps don’t love me. This might be a scenario where I end up buying a fitted version of this hat when it’s released in stores.

7/4 – Patriotic Tank Top. If there’s anything I love more than baseball hats, it’s sleeveless shirts. I could do without the “patriotic” part of it, but again, I bet it looks damn cool. If only I’d gone to the patriotic cowboy hat game last year, I’m sure the combo would be fantastic!

7/19 – Mariners Growler. Here’s the second MUST HAVE give-away for me. I’m going to this, I’m getting the growler, and I’m going to use it every chance I get!

7/21 – Edgar Martinez Hall of Fame Placcard. It’s a Sunday game, so the odds of me going to this are pretty low (unless I opt to stay in Seattle that weekend and make a weekend of it). But, it’s Edgar, so how can it be wrong?

8/9 – Edgar HOF Bobblehead. Welcome to Edgar Martinez Hall of Fame Weekend #2! I want to say they had a full weekend for Edgar when they retired his number last year, but I could be wrong. Maybe I’m mixing it up with the Griffey Hall of Fame Weekend. Either way, this is the first of three straight days of Edgar give-aways. No way this one will top his Light Bat Bobblehead, so I dunno.

8/10 – Edgar HOF Plaque. They did the same thing for Griffey, so this might be a cool one to pair with that one. This is also slated to be the game of the on-field ceremony, so if you have to pick one to go to this weekend, this would be it.

8/11 – Edgar Street Sign. Then again, if you’re basing your decision on the coolest Edgar give-away, I think having a replica street sign might be the way to go. It would definitely be MY preferred choice, and if there’s ever a reason to go to a Sunday Mariners game, this would be it.

9/14 – Unknown Bobblehead. We don’t have a player picked for this one yet, so ostensibly it’s being reserved for whoever’s having the best season not named Mitch Haniger. Dee Gordon is an obvious choice, if he bounces back. Felix is an old standby, of course, if he has any magic left in the tank. If by the grace of God Ichiro is still on the team, that’s another one. Maybe the Mariners reach into the wayback machine for someone like Buhner, or Randy, or Moyer, or one of the countless feel-good players of yore. If we’re looking at pitchers, you could do worse than Marco Gonzales. I dunno, if the whole team is terrible, maybe we get one for the Moose? The possibilities are limitless!

9/27 – Mariners Team Poster. This hardly feels essential, but you never know. We’d be getting in on the ground floor of some potentially important future M’s, so it might be a cool document to tack on your bedroom wall.

9/28 – Oktoberfest. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, these are a lock as one of the best give-aways every year. Don’t miss out, because it’s a helluva deal!