Lanier: Mariners ownership has failed, owes fans and taxpayers more

Under the new 25-year lease of T-Mobile Park the Seattle Mariners signed in 2018, ownership is required to continually upgrade the fan experience. Taxpayers own the stadium. The Mariners lease it from us and I’m disgusted by the tenant.

Are the Mariners in violation of the terms of their agreement with us, the taxpayers? I think so.

From the terms of the lease, ownership must, “maintain and improve the ballpark to ensure that it remains among the top one-third of all major league ballparks.” The Mariners are also on the hook for, “managing overall fan experience in the Ballpark.”

Has ownership meaningfully improved the fan experience? No. Is the product on the field among the top one-third of all Major League Baseball parks? Of course it isn’t. The top 40% of teams in MLB make the playoffs.

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The last time the Mariners won their division, the median home price in the state of Washington was $179,000.

How Seattle Mariners ownership is violating its agreement with King County

The single most important thing to the fan experience is seeing a winning team on the field.

Mariners ownership has utterly failed to deliver on the terms of their lease, lining their pockets with our cash, while paying a pittance to field a winning team.

“Payroll stands right around $145 million now, the club’s highest figure since 2019. The Mariners rank in the bottom half of MLB in payroll,” The Seattle Times noted in August.

“The Seattle Mariners made $396 million in 2023 and are spending only 40.4% of that money on this years payroll. Translation? Only seven teams are spending a lower percentage of revenue from 2023 on the 2024 roster,” a piece on the Sports Illustrated website published in July states.

Do you know how much the Mariners pay each year to lease T-Mobile Park? Just $1.5 million. That’s it. To put that in perspective, the M’s raked in $117 million in gate receipts for 81 games in 2024. That’s $1.4 million per game. Do you know anyone who can pay their rent or mortgage with one day’s work? Do you know of any other business that can cover their lease with one day’s sales? If so, let me know, I’m behind on my retirement savings.

T-Mobile Park, I’m told, is one of the best stadiums in the nation, that we built, with $372 million of our tax dollars.

Did you know that King County voters actually rejected using public money to pay for the stadium, but the Washington State Legislature approved funding anyway? Sound familiar?

Did you know the King County Council approved another $135 million for stadium improvements in 2018, so that the Mariners would agree to sign another lease?

In my very non-legal opinion, team ownership continually violates its agreement with King County, their own players and an entire generation of fans.

The Seattle Mariners are now worth $2.2 billion, according to Forbes. Owner John Stanton paid $1.2 billion for the team in 1996. He’s up, literally, one billion dollars.

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If Mariners ownership thinks a few free hot dogs parachuting down from the heavens will be enough to keep the fans happy, good luck.

In any case, goodbye baseball, for now. Some of us will see you again next year.

Mariners fans speak out to KIRO Newsradio

Listeners of “The Gee and Ursula Show” listeners are disgusted too.

Jon in the 206: Been a Mariners fan my whole life (35 years). As an adult I’ve averaged going to around 10 games per season. These last few years have been especially rough. I only went to one game this season. And only because it was a company paid event. Ownership needs to start listening to the fans or sell to someone who will.

Tom in Marysville: Went to the first Mariners game in ’77 thinking within a few years would win a pennant. Quit going three years ago. Shove those garlic fries where the sun don’t shine.

Billie in the 253: Every season they always give us false hope. And yes, the owners are taking advantage of the taxpayers by not paying a higher lease amount. The owners can afford it. And speaking of the owners, they need to go ahead and clean house and get rid of all of them! No more hot dogs being parachuted from the 300 level!

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Peter in Port Orchard: I’m not surprised by the outcome of the 2024 Mariners. I think the goal of team management is to be profitable instead of putting a playoff caliber team on the field.

A texter in the 425: The Mariners provide an awesome major league baseball experience. The venue is fantastic. The food everything about it is fantastic. Except the actual baseball team. That baseball team has been dog-crap garbage for 30 years and zero effort has been made to improve it. Anyone that is an actual true sports fan can admit that is true.

Andrew Lanier is the producer for “The Gee and Ursula Show.” Listen to the show weekday mornings from 9 a.m.- noon on KIRO Newsradio, 97.3 FM. Subscribe to the podcast here.