A great park needs a great name
The House that Griffey built ... then abandoned
The House of very few playoff games
The House where fly balls used to go to die
The announcement early last week that Safeco Insurance planned to end its stadium naming rights agreement with the Seattle Mariners after 20 years, effective 2018, might not have resonated as much as the news of, say, another Mariner starter going on the DL.
But for longtime (re: long-suffering) Mariners fans, Safeco was synonymous with the ballpark which was built thanks to Seattle’s memorable 1995 playoff run.
Whereas the football facility built in 2002 for the Seattle Seahawks is now on its third name (CenturyLink Field, Qwest Field before that, Seahawks Stadium before that), Safeco Field has been the only name the baseball stadium across the street from the current CLink has ever known. The field had that name one year before it was even ready for play, and that’s all M’s fans knew — Safeco Field. The Safe.
According to Forbes, here’s five possibilities the Mariners could tap into for possible stadium naming rights in the future:
Boeing.
Amazon.
Microsoft.
Holland America Line (a cruise line company, in case you were wondering).
Alaska Airlines.
But where’s the fun in that? Sure, the Mariners aren’t going to turn down the money. But there’s got to be something more catchy out there, even if it doesn’t come with an annual check:
Helmet Nachos Field
Rally Fries Park
Dave Niehaus Field
There could be some lag time between naming sponsors, if the Mariners choose to wait for just the right name, and/or just the right dollar amount per year (Safeco reportedly paid $1.8 million per year).
Here’s some suggestions that could tied them over — though all those words might not fit on the facade of the press box:
Welcome to ...
The stadium that won’t be imploded anytime soon
Park hopefully near future site of NBA/NHL team
That stadium down the road from Ivar’s
The internet has already come up with a few other potential businesses that have ties to Seattle — and even if they didn’t, it would still make for some awfully tasty giveaway nights:
Ezell’s Famous Chicken — Featuring the occasional “Gizzards Night”, though the ASPCA kindly requests those nights not be held in conjunction with the “Bark in the Park” nights.
Top Pot Doughnuts — featuring Golden Tate-autographed maple bars.
In-N-Out Burger ... Chik-fil-A ... La-Z-Boy recliner night ...
The possibilities are endless.
Mark Nelke is sports editor of The Press. He can be reached at 664-8176, Ext. 2019, or via email at mnelke@cdapress.com. Follow him on Twitter@CdAPressSports.