The Seattle Mariners went back to the future on Saturday night with a celebration rooted in the past.
In honor of the 20th anniversary of “Turn Ahead the Clock Night,” a promotional event from the Ken Griffey Jr. days of 1998, the Mariners put on their backward hats again for some forward-looking perspective.
Sleeveless maroon, black and silver uniforms were the most striking feature of the night, with many players choosing to wear them untucked and baring their tattooed arms on a less-than-balmy evening at Safeco Field. Some even spray-painted their cleats silver, to match silver batting helmets.
The big screen at Safeco field was full of fun facts and the Mariners had a blast on their official Twitter and Instagram accounts throughout the game against the Kansas City Royals:
Here's is tonight's Mariners lineup, as programmed by manager Scott Servais.#TurnAheadTheClock pic.twitter.com/4D9uRQWpMD
— Mariners (@Mariners) July 1, 2018
Vacationing on Europa, it was great to have Junior join us via hologram.#TurnAheadTheClock pic.twitter.com/aRJSACp06C
— Mariners (@Mariners) July 1, 2018
Great evening in Seattle, but looks like our overhead precipitation defense system may stay in place all night. #TurnAheadTheClock pic.twitter.com/zFeI3Sxa7P
— Mariners (@Mariners) July 1, 2018
? Reminder to all fans: the wave was outlawed as part of the 2022 collective bargaining agreement. ?#TurnAheadTheClock
— Safeco Field (@SafecoField) July 1, 2018
The traditional big-screen race between hydro boats was instead a matchup of DeLorean cars, like the one driven by Michael J. Fox in “Back to the Future.” Second baseman Dee Gordon also posed with a DeLorean for a post in the days ahead of the game.
Shout out to Hyperdrive Hank. It wouldn't be a Mariners game without you.#TurnAheadTheClock pic.twitter.com/HfWAfaWjyk
— Mariners (@Mariners) July 1, 2018
With Felix Hernandez pitching, the King’s Court section of fans was awash in silver rather than waving the traditional yellow “K” cards that are a fixture of his starts. Extra futuristic points for this Instagram caption:
The original “Turn Ahead the Clock Night” took place on July 18, 1998, as the team turned the clock ahead 20 years while playing at the long-gone Kingdome. On Saturday, the clock was again set to 2027 — which will be the Mariners’ 50th anniversary.
The scoreboard over center field featured ads from the future, scores for games set on distant planets, and out-of-this-world statistics. One screen flashed a promotional ad for Robot Appreciation Night, with all you can eat computer chips. And another showed a headline from 2027 with Seattle’s hopefully soon-to-be NHL team, the Yeti, winning a championship.
Mariners fan @tworsandtwols tweeted a bunch of the fun stuff:
I missed the still for the Moon Boot giveaway, but I did get this: pic.twitter.com/t32fFk9RvX
— Daniel Carroll (@tworsandtwols) July 1, 2018
.@NHLSeattle_ looking pretty good… pic.twitter.com/1fO2Nr7rH1
— Daniel Carroll (@tworsandtwols) July 1, 2018
With two strikes on Escobar, I set my phone flashlight to — • —
That’s a K, if you didn’t know.
— Daniel Carroll (@tworsandtwols) July 1, 2018
Tonight's scoreboard sponsors from the future…#TurnAheadTheClock pic.twitter.com/K3Ov6b93kv
— Bruce Ryan (@SeattleMariNERD) July 1, 2018
Got some facts for y’all: pic.twitter.com/gLdjyCzFXZ
— Daniel Carroll (@tworsandtwols) July 1, 2018
— Maple Burton (@frommsb) July 1, 2018
As always, Aaron [Au]smith and Dan "The Bionic Man" Wilson are bringing tonight's Mariners game to all corners of the galaxy. pic.twitter.com/b7NF8bqbin
— Mariners (@Mariners) July 1, 2018
Here’s a Facebook recap video of the game, including a mention of how Pluto, which was losing to Saturn 19-0, had a losing streak of 1,347 games. “The ball really carries well on Pluto,” the announcer said.