Seattle Mariners welcome new clubhouse dog to team

Make room for the newest addition to the Seattle Mariners roster, Tucker. On Saturday, the team announced he was the club’s newest dog and would regularly appear in team home games and occasional road games, according to MLB.com.

Seattle adopted the 4-year-old Labrador retriever mix from OkanDogs Dog Rescue, located in Cashmere, Washington. The organization called the Mariners earlier this summer when Tucker arrived at its rescue center. But before becoming an official member of the team, Tucker had to undergo an extensive screening process by team personnel.

Once Tucker went through the process, Mariners director of major league operations Jack Mosimann made the 2.5-hour drive to acquire the free agent.

“We got people in there and cross-checked them. Jack ran in there. We got some big numbers on that dog. So he went high in the draft. We’re happy with the have as a free agent in addition to our club,” Mariners manager Scott Servais told MLB.com.

Servais and his wife, Jill, volunteered for OkanDogs before the team adopted Tucker. They have been involved in animal activism for over 30 years. The Mariners often host “Bark at the Park” parties at T-Mobile Park, Seattle’s home turf.

Tucker didn’t wait long to befriend the Mariners players. Pitcher Erik Swanson posted a photo giving the dog some love ahead of the team’s doubleheader against the visiting Los Angeles Angels. Seattle shortstop JP Crawford also showed enthusiasm for his new teammate.

Endless belly and head scratching! https://t.co/puIkOjgFKd pic.twitter.com/50jZjSRm4S

—Erik Swanson (@Erik_Swanson03) August 6, 2022

🥹 https://t.co/Aps1e4SDuM

— jp crawford (@jp_crawford) August 6, 2022

The Mariners currently hold the last wildcard spot in the American League and have a two-game lead over the Baltimore Orioles – the team behind them. Despite the high-stakes baseball, Servais hopes Tucker can add some fun late in the season.

“This little guy is great. Our players are excited about it. It’s a nice little distraction for them in the clubhouse. They love the little guy,” Servais said.