It was March 2005, and Alex Tuttle couldn’t contain himself. After a down year, the Seattle Mariners were about to kick off their season with some legitimate hype. Over the winter, they’d signed stars Adrián Beltré and Richie Sexson. They’d hired a proven winner in manager Mike Hargrove. They still had Ichiro. And best of all, a pitching prospect in Tacoma named Félix Hernández was waiting to take his crown.
Was this a perfect team? By no means. But it was a new year, a new beginning. So on opening day, Tuttle fired off an email to some fellow Ms fans. “Hope springs eternal,” the then-25-year-old
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