💥 BREAKING NEWS: Rick Rizzs says goodbye to the Mariners—and Seattle suddenly recognizes a voice that’s been there all their baseball career ⚡ .MH

There are people who are so attached to a team that you forget they’ll ever leave. For the Seattle Mariners, Rick Rizzs is one such person.

And then the announcement came: the 2026 season will be Rick Rizzs’ last in the Mariners radio cabin.

No fanfare. No tears on the court. But enough to make the entire Seattle fan community pause for a moment.

Rick Rizzs will continue his role as a radio announcer on the Mariners Radio Network this season—his 41st season with the team, more than anyone else in franchise history. But this time, everyone knows: every game, every hit, every “Goodbye, baseball!” is getting closer to its end.

Rizzs joined the Mariners in 1983. Except for three short seasons with the Detroit Tigers in the early 1990s, almost his entire MLB career has been tied to Seattle. He witnessed the Mariners’ struggles, from their early days of finding their place, to their explosive 1995 debut, the historic 2001 roster, the seemingly endless drought, and finally the playoff-breaking 2022 season and the 2025 roster coming closer to the World Series than any previous generation.

But Rick Rizzs never tried to be the “center of the moment.”

His voice was optimistic, warm, always finding the positive—even in seasons where they lost more than they won. “Happy totals” after a victory, “Everybody scores!” during a grand slam, and especially his signature catchphrase “Goodbye, baseball!”—all of it wasn’t just narration, but the emotional language of the Mariners.

In his farewell statement, Rizzs didn’t talk about achievements. He talked about people. About Dave Niehaus—his 25-year teammate who became a Hall of Fame icon. To the producers, his colleagues, the players, and especially the fans of the Pacific Northwest.

And then, he got to the real reason: it was time to go home and spend time with his grandchildren.

At 72, Rick Rizzs will still call most of the 2026 home games and part of the road trips. He even joked that he’ll be at every postseason game “all the way to the World Series.” A very Rizzs statement—gentle, optimistic, and always believing in good things.

His legacy isn’t just in the booth. Off the field, Rizzs co-founded Toys For Kids, delivering Christmas presents to over 360,000 children in the area, providing college scholarships, buying baseball equipment, and renovating Little League fields. That’s the less-discussed part of his legacy—but it speaks volumes about who he was.

When Dave Niehaus passed away in 2010, many worried that the Mariners would never find their “voice” again. Rick Rizzs didn’t replace Niehaus—he continued. In his own way. In his own rhythm. And in a way enduring enough for a new generation to grow up with that voice.

2026 will come. And then it will pass.

When Rick Rizzs leaves the dugout, the Mariners will continue to play. But for many fans, there will be a void that’s hard to name—because there are voices that not only tell history, but are with history for a lifetime.