Commentary: Mariners first-place disappearing act another example of their magical talent

This organization has been a master of illusion for years. Losing the divisional lead so quickly this year is one of the bigger "smoke and mirrors" moments in franchise history.

I’ve decided to go all-in on the Mariners, because I really feel like it’s a win-win this season. Either they find a way to win games again – and today was a good start – or worst case, they can still entertain us with what they’re really good at: Doing Magic.

I mean, who else can make a ten-game divisional lead disappear so quickly? Actually – no one! It was a record in the divisional era of baseball dating back to 1969. In fact, the M’s lost their ten-game lead in just 24 games. The previous record was 33 games.

Talk about an impressive case of "Now you see it, now you don’t!"

Which brings me to an interesting proposal. If the Mariners can figure out how to win the division, we all go home happy. We ride that wave of momentum right into the playoffs, which would be magical in and of itself. That’s obviously the preference.

But if they miss the playoffs altogether? Forget a rebuild. How about a complete rebrand. Change the team name to the "Seattle Magic." We can still call them the M’s!

This organization has been a master of illusion for years. Losing the divisional lead so quickly this year is one of the bigger "smoke and mirrors" moments in franchise history. And if they miss the playoffs, we’d possibly see more disappearing acts, like the manager and members of the front office.

No offense to the Mariner Moose, but you could replace him with "Poof the Magic Dragon." The Seattle Magic wouldn’t be cult heroes – they’d be occult heroes.

Imagine a stadium filled with fans wearing capes and holding wands – it would be a marketing team’s dream come true!

It would make for easier explanations for why ticket prices magically increased again. Balking on payroll budgets at the last minute would play into the whole "masters of deception" theme. And if they continued to lose, it’d be a lot more thematic to say that this team was simply cursed.

And let me emphasize, it doesn’t have to be a negative thing either: "Sodo Mojo" would still apply. I mean, the definition of "mojo" is "a magic charm or spell."

Scott Servais even said it today: "A three-run home run is a magical thing."

Yes, it is. Magical.

Listen, we all want the Mariners to succeed. We’re all hoping today’s win sparks new momentum, combined with a couple shots in the arm in the form of offensive help before the trade deadline. Playoffs, championships, nothing’s better than that.

But if these Mariners can’t navigate their way back to the playoffs, the compass in their logo would once again be all-for-naught. They’d be worthy of a new name – and definitely a new logo to go with it.

Might I suggest a rabbit being pulled out of a hat?