Exclusive: ARod says he will be at Mariners’ 50 Seasons Celebration

Over a quarter century after he left the team in free agency, ARod is returning to celebrate his time with the Seattle Mariners.

Alex Rodriguez announced in a conversation Tuesday morning on Seattle Sports’ Brock and Salk that he will be in attendance for the Mariners’ 50 Seasons Celebration Night when the top 50 players in team history are revealed on the field at T-Mobile Park in a pregame ceremony.

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Rodriguez said he received a call from Mariners chairman John Stanton, who invited him to be part of the festivities this weekend celebrating the 50th season since the team joined the American League in 1977.

“It brought back a lot of emotions, needless to say,” Rodriguez told hosts Brock Huard and Mike Salk. “My mother, my brother, my sister, who dropped me off at the airport when I was 17 years old and handed me over, handed the keys over to (former Mariners manager) Lou Piniella and the Seattle Mariners organization, where I kind of grew up from being a young man to a man.”

Rodriguez is undoubtedly one of the best players in Mariners history. The No. 1 overall pick in the 1993 MLB Draft by Seattle, he debuted in the big leagues the next year at just 18 years old, and he spent his first seven big league seasons in a Mariners uniform. Along the way, he won a batting title, became the third player in history with a 40-40 season, made four All-Star teams, won four Silver Slugger awards, and appeared in three separate postseasons with the Mariners.

Ahead of the 2001 season, though, Rodriguez went from a fan favorite in Seattle to a permanent villain when he left in free agency for a then-record 10-year, $252 million contract with the AL West rival Texas Rangers. When Rodriguez made his return to the Emerald City with the Rangers that season, he was showered with boos and fake dollar bills. The animosity from the Mariners fanbase continued throughout Rodriguez’s career, which included his final 12 seasons as a member of the hated New York Yankees.

After all those years and all those boos in Seattle, Rodriguez is grateful to have a chance to come home.

“I’ve been getting booed there for 27 years, so I kind of had lost hope that this story would come full circle,” he said. “And I’m over the moon and thank God for the opportunity. … If I can confess to you guys, it hurt when I went back to Seattle (as an opposing player), because obviously Seattle was my first love. It was where Lou Piniella taught me how to be a baseball player. Where (Ken Griffey Jr.) taught me from being a batter to a professional hitter. Griffey taught me how to be a superstar. You know, Randy (Johnson taught me) how to compete. Joey (Cora taught me) how to prepare.

“There’s so many people that I’m thankful for. And I’m probably as excited as you guys and all the fans listening that will be in attendance because I look up to most of the 50 people that will be there as players and coaches and the entire organization.”

"I'm over the moon and thank god for this opportunity."

Alex Rodriguez speaks on what it means to him to return to Seattle for #Mariners50 this Saturday on with @BrockHuard & @TheMikeSalk. https://t.co/V4PRAurbBd pic.twitter.com/JAbxg6Yjwz

— Seattle Sports (@SeattleSports) August 4, 2026

Rodriguez, who is now an MLB analyst for FOX, has been open in recent years about the mistakes he made during his playing career, and just two years ago he told Brock and Salk about his desire to celebrate his M’s memories.

“I’m disappointed that things ended the way they did,” Rodriguez said in that July 2024 conversation. “And I hope that one day with new ownership now and management – which I have a very good relationship with, I’m a big supporter of the Mariners… I hope that one day I get to come back and celebrate, at least thank the great fans of the Mariners for what they did for me.

“… I still think about my No. 3 jersey that (I wore with the Mariners) … I thought we had some of the most fun, exciting teams, built a lot of young people’s memories.”

Mariners 50 Seasons Celebration schedule

• Friday

Game: M’s vs. Tampa Bay Rays, 6:45 p.m.

Postgame event: Alumni Home Run Derby – click here for more details.

• Saturday

Game: M’s vs. Rays, 6:50 p.m.

Pregame event: The top 50 Mariners players will be revealed on the field in a ceremony.

• Sunday

Game: M’s vs. Rays, 1:10 p.m.

Pregame event: Legends Photo Day – Fans will have the opportunity to take photos on the warning track with dozens of M’s legends including team Hall of Fame members Ichiro, Randy Johnson and Félix Hernández.

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