The Mariner Moose is the team mascot of the Seattle Mariners, a Major League Baseball team. He is an anthropomorphic moose who mainly appears and performs during Mariners home games at T-Mobile Park; he additionally makes several hundred appearances in the community each year, at everything from hospitals to wedding receptions. His appearance has remained relatively unchanged since his introduction in 1990, making him one of the most recognizable and popular mascots throughout all of Major League Baseball. History While the Mariner Moose was the Mariners' first full-time mascot, the team previously held a mascot competition in 1979 in response to the popularity of the San Diego Chicken. The winner of the competition was "Spacey the Needle," which was a man that wore a hat resembling the top of the Space Needle while on stilts; a man in a diaper took second place. However, Spacey was plagued with mobility issues due to his stilts; the mascot was retired after only a few games. The San Diego Chicken itself was a temporary Mariners mascot for six straight games before the All-Star Game that year; his actions in one game prompted future Mariners manager Lou Piniella, then a New York Yankees player, to throw his glove at him. In 1990, a contest for children 14 and under was held to select a mascot for the team under then-owner Jeff Smulyan, who had purchased the team from George Argyros the previous year. Out of 2,500 entries received, the club chose the "Mariner Moose," originally submitted by Ammon Spiller of Bellingham, Washington, then a fifth-grader at Central Elementary School in nearby Ferndale; he and his school were each rewarded with a $1,000 check. The runner-up was "Seaward the Sea Monster," proposed by Grant Weaver of Ben Franklin Elementary in Redmond; he received a $500 check as a consolation prize. Spiller and Weaver, along with their families, also received tickets for a Mariners game, as did three other finalists and their families. The Moose made his debut during the Mariners' home opener on April 13, 1990, dancing on the field in front of a sell-out crowd at the Kingdome to the tune of "The Future's So Bright, I Gotta Wear Shades" by Timbuk 3. However, his introduction was not warmly received; Mariners fans repeatedly chanted, "Kill the Moose," during the game. The reception remained very negative throughout the first two months of the season; not