Mallex Smith is probably your new favorite Mariners player

Mallex Smith has a politically-correct answer for why his uniform number is 0. He also has another answer.

A closer look: Who is new Mariners center fielder Mallex Smith?

I can’t tell what what that second answer is, but you can hear it for yourself in the new Mariners center fielder’s interview from Tuesday on 710 ESPN Seattle’s Danny, Dave and Moore.

Regardless of why he wears the number that he wears, Smith just might be your favorite new Mariners player – of which there are many – after you listen to his first on-air conversation in Seattle.

Here are some highlights from the two-time Mariner – he’s a player so nice Jerry Dipoto traded for him twice, after all – talking to Danny, Dave and Moore.

• Smith had no issue making light of the first time Mariners general manager Dipoto acquired him, which was from the Atlanta Braves not even two hours before he was shipped off to Tampa Bay in a trade bringing pitcher Drew Smyly to Seattle. Asked about his favorite memory of his first tenure with the team, Smith jokingly replied: “I guess it just had to be the high praise from the fans. They showed so much love. Everybody was blowing up my phone. I felt like everybody in the organization was just so happy to have me. It was awesome.”

• Smith wasn’t left in the dark about his fate after that first trade, unlike the rest of us. “I had an idea (I would be traded again). Dipoto let me knew that it was a high possibility that I would go one of two places – one being L.A., the Dodgers, the other being Tampa. So it wasn’t a surprise to me, but it was a surprise to everybody else.”

• Is he the fastest player in the majors? He’s willing to find out. “Ah, you know, I ain’t race nobody else so I can’t say that. But if we all get a chance to line up, everybody can find out.”

• Smith was a defensive back in high school football, much to the chagrin of his baseball coaches. “I like to hit. … That definitely scared my baseball teams but it was fun for me.”

To hear the full interview with Smith, listen to the embedded player in this post or click here for a podcast.

Mariners trades: Canó/Díaz | Segura | Colomé | Paxton | Zunino

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