Beneath overcast skies, the Mariners opened the Safeco Field doors at 4:40 p.m. to start their 41st season in Seattle.
Bob Perrell, 64, was the first in line outside the center-field gate on the corner of First Avenue South and Edgar Martinez Drive South.
Behind him the sellout crowd cheered as stadium ushers moved into position and M’s broadcasters Rick Rizzs and Dave Sims led a “3-2-1” countdown that began a giddy procession into the stadium.
“I had to be here,” said Perrell, a 64-year-old North Bend realtor who grew up in Boston and moved to Seattle 26 years ago.