Baseball had its beginnings in Seattle in the 1870s, with the first professional franchise debuting in 1890: the "Seattles" of the Pacific Northwest League. Later, in the 1890s, former major leaguer and baseball visionary Daniel E. Dugdale migrated to Seattle, and did much to popularize high caliber professional baseball in Seattle and the Northwest. Dugdale is recognized as the early father of Seattle baseball.
If Dugdale laid the groundwork for pro baseball in Seattle, Emil Sick brought it to true glory and mass popularity. In 1937, he purchased the struggling Pacific Coast League Seattle Indians franchise, built a state-of-the-art, sparkling new ballpark for his team and city, and christened his new team the Seattle Rainiers. This ushered in the first true glory days of baseball in Seattle. For the next 27 years, the Seattle Rainiers and Pacific Coast League baseball were the toast of the town. All Images courtesy David Eskenazi.