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Mariners have same 'secret sauce' as Super Bowl champ Seahawks

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The Seattle Seahawks just claimed a world championship, and now the Seattle Mariners are preparing for a season in which they have championship aspirations of their own. In what will be the 50th year both franchises have existed together, it’s could be the first time a Seahawks championship run will be followed by the Mariners playing into October.

It turns out the teams share something in common.

During their run to winning the Lombardi Trophy and in the celebration that followed, it was common to hear Seahawks players express their love for one another.

In the usually not-so-vulnerable world of football, the Seahawks were just that when discussing the tight-knit brotherhood of their team. It’s something head coach Mike Macdonald and players credited as a contributing factor to their success.

There’s a similar feeling of closeness in the Mariners’ clubhouse.

In his first full season as Mariners manager in 2025, Dan Wilson shared a constant message of grace and showed an unwavering belief in his players. It was also common to hear M’s players speak about how much they enjoyed showing up to the ballpark every day with their teammates and the connection they shared.

Wilson spoke about the importance of having a tight-knit group and how it’s a “secret sauce” the M’s and Seahawks share when he joined Seattle Sports’ Brock and Salk on Monday.

“As I told them earlier this camp, you look at the Seahawks and the season that they had which was tremendous and (they were) Super Bowl champions – congratulations to what they were able to accomplish – but just about every single conversation or interview after that game was the players talking about each other and how wonderful it was and how much love they had for each other and how they love working together,” Wilson said.

“And that’s what it takes and that’s where grace comes in. And I think our guys truly loved each other last year and there was a lot of that. That really pushes you through and guides you through, and I think that’s a part of our secret sauce here.”

Macdonald and the Seahawks clung to their “12 as one” mantra throughout this past season. Brock and Salk co-host Brock Huard, a former NFL quarterback, asked Wilson if those type of messages have the same impact in a baseball clubhouse.

“I do, and I think it’s important, especially in baseball when it’s every single day and it’s over the course of a long haul and a little reminder here, a little reminder there can go a long way,” Wilson said. “But those messages are very important and our guys, like I said, really responded to it and have done such a great job of coming together as a group. And when those guys start it from within, that’s when it’s really important, and those guys have done a tremendous job in that clubhouse and it’s a tight group.”

Hear the full conversation at this link or in the audio player in this story. Listen to Brock and Salk weekdays form 6-10 a.m. or find the podcast on the Seattle Sports app.

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