SEATTLE (AP) — Whether it was teammates, coaches, kitchen crew or clubhouse managers, Josh Naylor felt abundantly comfortable across his three months with the Seattle Mariners.
And thanks to a furry friend, Naylor felt right at home. A day removed from signing a $92.5 million, five-year contract, Naylor credited Seattle’s clubhouse Labrador retriever, Tucker, for helping win him over.
“When I found out we had Tucker, he put me over the edge, man,” Naylor said with a toothy grin. “I love that little guy.”
Naylor loves Seattle, and vice versa.
The 28-year-old free agent spent 54 games with the Mariners after being acquired from the Arizona Diamondbacks ahead of the 2025 trade deadline and hit .299 with nine home runs, 33 RBIs and 19 stolen bases. Naylor endeared himself to the Seattle faithful with hard-nosed play, as well as for giving away pairs of his cleats to kids.
“I always tell players, or even little kids I work with in the offseason sometimes, like, play for the little kid inside of you,” Naylor said. “Always remind that kid that it’s just a game, and you’re here to have fun, and you’re here to play hard, and you’re here to compete.”
Seattle reached Game 7 of the American League Championship Series before losing to Toronto and falling one win shy of its first World Series. After a stellar postseason in which hit .340 with three home runs, five RBIs and two stolen bases, Naylor felt he had unfinished business in Seattle.
“I wanted to come back to give this fanbase and this city and my teammates and their families a World Series in the next five years,” Naylor said, “or, multiple World Series or multiple pennants.”
President of baseball operations Jerry Dipoto is confident Naylor can be a key cog in winning the first World Series for a franchise that started play in 1977. He described it as a “no-brainer” to bring Naylor back.
“This was about as simple a decision as we could make organizationally,” Naylor said. “After acquiring Josh midseason at the trade deadline, the way he fit into our clubhouse, the community, the way the fan base embraced him.”
Naylor didn’t feel compelled to test the open market. He felt confident in the Mariners’ core — and not facing Seattle’s starting pitchers for the foreseeable future.
Instead, Naylor will have the good fortune of hitting behind Cal Raleigh and Julio Rodriguez, who finished second and sixth in MVP voting.
Sticking in Seattle means a good deal for Naylor, who became a father for the first time this year. With a handful of family members on hand for Tuesday’s news conference, Naylor, whose younger brother, Bo, is a Cleveland catcher, discussed his desire to settle down in the Emerald City.
“I really would love to spend the rest of my career here and raise a family here,” Naylor said, “and have my family come to Seattle more often and watch baseball games and hopefully win a World Series here.”
Naylor’s greatest motivator is to win, which has been the case more often than not across his seven-year big league career.
“This isn’t done, in my opinion,” Naylor said. “We’ve got a lot more to do and it’s exciting for not only them, but for me and the whole city. The teammates that we have here, it’s going to be an awesome offseason in my opinion.”
