SEATTLE _ They dot the stands, a virtual throng of Mariners fans, in silent and perpetual vigil throughout this oddest of baseball seasons.
If you're able to forget, for a moment, that they are made of synthetic material, and really stretch your imagination, you can almost remember what it was like when real people made real noise at T-Mobile Park. Instead, with live fans banned from attendance due to coronavirus, we get cutout replicas, more than 13,000 of them.
"In this bizarre world we're living in, and this very different sports world, it's kind of nice to see fans in the seats, even if they're only a quarter of an inch thick and made of Styrofoam," said Jim Copacino, co-founder of the agency that has long produced the Mariners' commercials.
"Another thing _ they stay 'til the last out, right?"
People paid $30 each for the honor (with a portion going to charity). For some, it's a lark. But for many, it's deeply personal, the cutouts representing a beloved family member, a fond memory, a departed relative.
Oh, and lots of cherished animals, too.
To paraphrase a television show from the 1950s, there are 13,000 Styrofoam stories in the naked ballpark. Here are six of them.
