Seattle Mariners

. The events of Buck's life are told in mostly chronological order, interspersed by flashbacks or daydream sequences which hint at Buck's back-story. Television KING TV 5 (NBC) 1977 - 81, KSTW TV 11; 1981 - 86, 89 - 92, 98 - Present, KIRO TV 7 (CBS); 1986 - 89, 95 - 99, and Fox Sports Northwest 1993 - Present. They form a friendship, none too soon for Rizzo, who becomes increasingly dependent upon Buck as health problems make it increasingly harder for Rizzo to cope with his situation. KVI 570 was the original home of the Mariners from 1977 - 85, then to KIRO 710; 1985 - 02, and currently on KOMO News 1000; 2003 - present. Over the course of the rest of the film the two deal with the realities of all-but-homeless street life, suspended briefly by a foray into a Warhol-like party scene (with some of the Warhol superstars in cameo appearances). During Mariners broadcasts, the TV and radio announcers switch with each other during the middle of the 5th inning. He meets the lame, scraggly Rico "Ratso" Rizzo (Dustin Hoffman), who first cons him out of $20, but after they cross paths a second time, they begin a partnership, with Rizzo working as Buck's "manager".

On October 20, 2004, the Mariners announced the signing of their new manager, Mike Hargrove. Hargrove was the manager who led the Cleveland Indians past the Mariners in the 1995 ALCS. He is soon forced to hustle for a meager living as a "midnight cowboy" with a clientele that's the opposite (in gender and affluence) of what he originally set out to attract. Just days after the end of the season, the Mariners fired Bob Melvin. His naïveté becomes evident as quickly as his cash disappears. The season's end was enlivened by Ichiro breaking George Sisler's single season record of 257 hits (finishing with 262), and events to honor the retirement of Mariner stalwart, Edgar Martinez. He heads to New York City in the hope of leading the life of a kept man. After the All-Star break, unable to ignore the dreadful state of their team, the Mariners gave the team a complete overhaul, moving aging and unproven players away from center stage and inserting over a dozen call-ups into the 25-man roster. The film follows the story of a young Texan named Joe Buck (Jon Voight) who dresses like a rodeo cowboy.

The team lost their first five games and went into the All-Star Break with a 9-game losing streak, a 32-54 season record (.372), and a 17-game deficit behind the first-place Texas Rangers. The song "He Quit Me" was also on the soundtrack; it was written by Warren Zevon, who also included it (as "She Quit Me") on his debut album Wanted Dead or Alive. Although many of their players were aging, the Mariners continued an apparent practice of "content to contend," starting the 2004 season having not made a major deal in three years. The film featured the song "Everybody's Talkin'", sung by Harry Nilsson, which won a Grammy Award for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance; Schlesinger chose that song over "I Guess The Lord Must Be In New York City", which Nilsson had written specifically for the film. The 2004 season, however, saw the demise of the Mariners' dominance of their division. John Barry, who supervised the music for the film, won a Grammy for Best Instrumental Theme. The Mariners stayed competitive in 7 of the 9 seasons from 1995 to 2003. The film has been deemed "culturally significant" by the Library of Congress and selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry.

The Mariners signed Bob Melvin to be their new manager. Despite an excellent start to the 2003 season, the Mariners failed to make the playoffs. The re-released version of the film was identical to the original. At the end of the 2002 season, manager Lou Piniella left the Mariners to manage the Tampa Bay Devil Rays over the management policy of non-aggressive hiring. This time the board granted it an "R" rating. They pulled off a come-from-behind 3-2 series win over the Cleveland Indians in the ALDS to advance to the American League Championship Series against the New York Yankees, but succumbed to the Yankees for the second year in a row in the ALCS, 4 games to 1, in a hard fought series, a sad end to such a historic year. In 1971 the film was re-submitted to the MPAA ratings board in anticipation of a re-release. In 2001, despite the loss of superstar shortstop Alex Rodriguez (He would be greeted at his return to Safeco with Monopoly money by fans, no doubt to protest his selling out of the Seattle fans), the addition of Japanese sensation Ichiro Suzuki and a career season by second basemen Bret Boone helped the Mariners to the most successful regular season on record in the modern era, leading the major leagues in winning percentage from start to finish, easily winning the American League West championship, setting a new Major Leage Baseball record for most wins in a single season with an unprecedented 116, matching the previous record for single season wins set by the Chicago Cubs in 1906. For Hoffman, the role enabled him to avoid any typecasting due to his previous role in The Graduate and began his reputation as a actor of considerable dramatic range.

The Mariners won the division title again in 1997, but were defeated in the ALDS 3-1 by the Baltimore Orioles. Both Hoffman and Voight were nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor, a situation which split the vote for fans of the film and helped John Wayne receive his only Oscar for his role in True Grit. Their championship run was halted by the Cleveland Indians. The film is the only X-rated film to win the Academy Awards for Best Picture and Best Director. Down 2-0 in the ALDS,in one of the games most dramatic moments, the Mariners won three games at home to beat the New York Yankees and advance to the ALCS. An assortment of much smaller roles are filled by Sylvia Miles, John McGiver, Brenda Vaccaro, Barnard Hughes, Ruth White, Jennifer Salt (the screenwriter's daughter), and Bob Balaban. The Mariners won the tiebreaker game 9-1 and clinched their first ever trip to the playoffs. It stars Dustin Hoffman and newcomer Jon Voight in the title role.

A September winning streak marked by late-inning comeback wins, combined with a losing streak by the Angels, opened the way for the Mariners to tie the Angels for first place on the last day of the season. Midnight Cowboy is a 1969 film written by Waldo Salt based on the novel by James Leo Herlihy, and directed by John Schlesinger. In mid-August, the Mariners were 13 games behind the first-place California Angels. Rizzo the Rat, a street-wise but pesky Muppet, was named by Frank Oz after Hoffman's character (according to Steve Whitmire the puppeteer behind his performances). An early-season injury to Griffey seemed to doom the 1995 season. By 1995, the Mariners had added a core of strong players built around center-fielder Ken Griffey, Jr., pitcher Randy Johnson and designated hitter Edgar Martinez.

Prior to the 1993 season, the Mariners hired manager Lou Pinella, who managed the Cincinnati Reds to a 1990 World Series win. Though it was the team's best season, it was only good enough to end in fifth place. In 1991, the Mariners had their first winning season, finishing 83-79. His defensive ability, hitting power, and baserunning speed would begin to change the Mariners' reputation.

Highlights of the early years included hosting the 1979 All-Star Game, Gaylord Perry's 300th career win, and promotions, such as "Funny Nose Glasses Night." In 1989, rookie centerfielder Ken Griffey, Jr. joined the team. Despite having stars such as Alvin Davis and Gaylord Perry, the team gained a reputation for their poor performance. The Mariners were added to the American League in 1977, and were for many years perennial non-achievers. They are in the Western Division of the American League.

The Seattle Mariners are a Major League Baseball team based in Seattle, Washington. Peoria Mariners. Inland Empire 66ers
Wisconsin Timber Rattlers
Everett AquaSox. San Antonio Missions.

Tacoma Rainiers. American League
. Pitching Strikeouts: 308 (1993) Randy Johnson. Pitching Wins: 21 (2003) Jamie Moyer.

Strikeouts: 176 (2002) Mike Cameron. Hitting Streak: 31 games (2001) Ichiro Suzuki. Stolen Bases: 60 (1987) Harold Reynolds. Triples: 10 (1987) Phil Bradley.

Doubles: 54 (1996) Alex Rodriguez. Runs: 141 (1996) Alex Rodriguez. Hits: 262 (2004) Ichiro Suzuki (Major League Record). Batting Average: .372 (2004) Ichiro Suzuki.

Runs Batted In: 147 (1997) Ken Griffey Jr. Home Runs: 56 (1997 & 1998) Ken Griffey Jr. Dave Valle. Dave Henderson.

Rick Rizzs. Ron Fairly. Dave Niehaus (1977-present). Mike Hargrove (2005-).

Bob Melvin (2003-2004, 156-168). Lou Piniella (1993-2002, 840-711). Bill Plummer (1992, 64-98). Jim Lefebvre (1989-1991, 233-253).

Jim Snyder (1988, 45-60). Dick Williams (1986-1988, 159-192). Marty Martinez (1986, 0-1 - Interim manager). Chuck Cottier (1984-1986, 98-119).

Del Crandell (1983-1984 93-131). Rene Lachemann (1981-1983, 140-180). Maury Wills (1980-1981, 26-56). Darrell Johnson (1977-1980, 229-362).

42 Jackie Robinson (retired throughout baseball). Omar Vizquel. Dave Valle. Kazuhiro Sasaki.

Alex Rodríguez. Harold Reynolds. Ken Phelps. John Olerud.

Jeff Nelson. Mario Mendoza. Tino Martinez. Edgar Martinez.

Mark Langston. Ruppert Jones. Randy Johnson. Rickey Henderson.

Dave Henderson. Carlos Guillén. Ken Griffey, Sr. Ken Griffey, Jr.

Rich Gossage. Freddy Garcia. Alvin Davis. Julio Cruz.

Mike Cameron. Jay Buhner. Chris Bosio. 13 Carlos García (first base).

15 Jeff Newman (third base). 41 Jim Slaton (bullpen). 34 Bryan Price (pitching). 25 Don Baylor (hitting).

  9 Ron Hassey (bench). Coaches