Remembering the 1969 Seattle Pilots: Mariners to Turn Back the Clock this Sunday 7/9

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I don't guess too many here are old enough to remember the one season that the Seattle Pilots existed. I'm not, but I've had an interest in this team since I did some reading about it a few years ago on the Web.

The Pilots entered MLB as an expansion team in 1969 and lasted only one season before becoming the Milwaukee Brewers. Although they didn't do much on the field or at the turnstiles, the Pilots made their mark in baseball fashion history by wearing the infamous "scrambled eggs" cap, so-called because of the design stitched on the bill. The Brewers adopted the royal blue and gold colors of the pilots when they came to be in 1970, but didn't bring the scrambled eggs with them, meaning that that design saw the light of day for only one season.



Since the Pilots had such a short life, not a lot of memorabilia from their one season remains in existence. If you can find it on ebay, it usually goes pretty high.

It will be interesting to see the Pilots uniforms on the field this Sunday. This will be the first time since 1969 that this uniform has been worn in a game.


Oh, and can you name this former Pilot? He was in Spring Training, but didn't make the team.

http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/a...=.jsp&c_id=mlb

Mariners turn back the clock
06/29/2006 9:58 PM ET By C.J. Bowles / MLB.com

SEATTLE -- It is important to celebrate the past.

That's exactly what the Mariners will do Sunday, July 9, when the team honors the first Major League Baseball team in the Pacific Northwest, the Seattle Pilots, at Turn Back the Clock Night.


Even though the Pilots only lasted for one season in Seattle before moving to Milwaukee and becoming the Brewers, the team paved the way for Seattle to be selected as the site for an expansion ballclub in 1977.


When the Mariners take the field against the team with the best record in baseball, the Tigers, they will don the throwback Pilots uniforms. The Tigers will also participate in the celebration by wearing replica uniforms of their 1969 team.


"The Pilots paved the way for Major League Baseball in Seattle," said Mariners manager of marketing and promotions Cole Parsons. "Turn Back the Clock Day is a fun opportunity to take a trip back to 1969 and relive baseball in the Northwest before the Mariners, the Kingdome and Safeco Field."


Several people who were prominent figures for the Pilots franchise have been invited to participate in pregame ceremonies. They include outfielders Tommy Davis, Steve Hovley, and Steve Whitaker, pitcher bob Locker, coach Ed O'Brien, and broadcaster Bill Schonely.


To give the game more of an old-fashioned feel, organist Jerry Frank will play live music between innings while the hydroplane race and Hat Trick will be done in a throwback way. Schonely, the former broadcaster, will also get a turn behind the public address microphone.


According to Parsons, when the Mariners trot onto the field in the Pilots uniforms, it will be the fifth time the team has worn throwback jerseys -- the first time since 1998 and also the first time since moving to Safeco Field. The first came in 1993 when the Seattle Rainiers were celebrated. Next, in '95, the Seattle Steelheads of the Negro Leagues were honored. Then in '97, the first Mariners team was remembered as the trident uniforms were pulled out of the closet 20 years after their inception. And finally, in '98, Seattle turned ahead the clock to the year 2027 with jerseys that featured vertical lettering of "Mariners" and the player's last name on the back.


"One thing we decided was that we wanted it to stay in Seattle," Parsons explained. "Even though the Pilots are not a part of the Mariners' franchise, they are big part of baseball in Seattle. We've done the Rainiers and we've done the Steelheads of the Negro Leagues, so the next logical step was the Pilots.


"We think that this edition of the retro uniforms gives it even a little bit more legs. And, the Pilots are a piece of Seattle baseball history that a lot of people don't know very much about."


The Mariners have also had numerous other nights to celebrate the past, like the decade of the 60s or the 70s, but those promotions did not include a different jersey being worn by the players.

[Yachtzee]

Lou Pinella

[cincinnati chili]

Ball Four. Great book. Shoulda had more pictures. I vividly remember the passages where Bouton describes the players' disdain for the unis.

[westofyou]

SABR is pleased to announce that former New York Yankee, Seattle Pilot knuckleballer, and Ball Four author, Jim Bouton will be the keynote speaker for SABR36 in Seattle

http://nwsabr.sabr.org/convention.htm

[KronoRed]

Originally Posted by Yachtzee

Lou Pinella

Did you cheat by checking the picture name like I did?

[MWM]

If you read Ball Four you knew instantly who that was. That's how I knew.

[savafan]

Or read Lou's autobiography

[MrCinatit]

To me, Ball Four was the ultimate baseball book - though an unpopular one, as it did not paint a pretty picture of ballplayers at the time.

[RFS62]

OK boys, let's go pound some Budweiser

[traderumor]

http://www.baseball-reference.com/p/pinielo01.shtml

Transactions

June 9, 1962: Signed by the Cleveland Indians as an amateur free agent.

November 26, 1962: Drafted by the Washington Senators from the Cleveland Indians in the 1962 first-year draft.

August 4, 1964: Sent by the Washington Senators to the Baltimore Orioles to complete an earlier deal made on March 31, 1964. The Washington Senators sent a player to be named later to the Baltimore Orioles for Buster Narum. The Washington Senators sent Lou Piniella (August 4, 1964) to the Baltimore Orioles to complete the trade.

March 10, 1966: Traded by the Baltimore Orioles to the Cleveland Indians for Cam Carreon.

October 15, 1968: Drafted by the Seattle Pilots from the Cleveland Indians as the 28th pick in the 1968 expansion draft.

April 1, 1969: Traded by the Seattle Pilots to the Kansas City Royals for Steve Whitaker and John Gelnar.

December 7, 1973: Traded by the Kansas City Royals with Ken Wright to the New York Yankees for Lindy McDaniel.

So, what was the "first year draft" mentioned in 1962?

[RANDY IN INDY]

Originally Posted by RFS62

OK boys, let's go pound some Budweiser

"Minch, how many major league ballplayers do you think take greenies? Half? More?"

"Hell, a lot more than half. Just about the whole Baltimore team takes them. Most of the Tigers. Most of the guys on this club. And that's just what I know for sure."

Jim Bouton and Don Mincher in Ball Four

[Heath]

Yeah, suuuuuurrrreee...

[Spitball]

Originally Posted by RFS62

OK boys, let's go pound some Budweiser

I absolutely loved that line from Joe Schultz...In fact, I used it all through high school, through college and even today.

Originally Posted by RANDY IN CHAR NC

"Minch, how many major league ballplayers do you think take greenies? Half? More?"

"Hell, a lot more than half. Just about the whole Baltimore team takes them. Most of the Tigers. Most of the guys on this club. And that's just what I know for sure."

Jim Bouton and Don Mincher in Ball Four

I loved the locker room/back of the bus humor and inside stuff. Great book.

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Here's how the "Pilots" looked on the field:




The Mariners are now auctioning off these game-worn uniforms. I'd love to have a set, but the price is a bit steep for my budget...

http://mariners.auction.mlb.com/

[Heath]

scrambled eggs on the cap. Then you die to go to Hawaii.