As a kid that grew up in West Seattle and attended 69 of the Pilots' 81 home games, I love your Web site. I am a U.S. History teacher and a play-by-play radio announcer for Portland State University football and basketball. I was 14 in the summer of 1969 and will never forget my freshman year at O'Dea when I heard the news they were leaving Seattle.
—thewitt2

Mike, I'll keep it short - this is a fantastic site. I'm 41 years old, with two kids, whom I take to Mariner games. I can now show them the team that actually started it all. Thanks to the Pilots, I got to see Yaz when I was only 10 years old (when my dad would take me to the game) - an impression that will stick with me my entire life. You've got the best site on the 'net. Keep it up!
—COUG351C

I remember as a boy growing up in Billerica, Massachusetts (Tommy Glavine's hometown), a game between the Pilots and my Red Sox (I was only eight at the time). I remember that a Pilots pitcher hit a home run. Ever since, I have been a fan of the Pilots. As a result of your site, I recently started reading Ball Four again; the last time was about 20 years ago. What a classic book ! Where can I buy one of those Pilots road uniforms that you are wearing? I would love to have one.
—HateNYYankees

NOTE FROM MIKE: Check out the Mitchell & Ness entry in the For Sale section.

You forgot my husband, Buzz Stephen, who was taken in the first round of the expansion draft from the Minnesota Twins. I remember most of the men you have listed. A walk down memory lane.
—Nifferbrn

NOTE FROM MIKE: Buzz didn't play for the Pilots during the regular season, so he doesn't have a his own page in the Players section, but he is in the transaction page and the 1970 Trading Card Gallery. I do need to figure out a better way to feature veterans such as Buzz and the players who were Pilots during 1970 Spring Training.

John Wheeldon was our neighbor. He did beautiful pastel drawings and portraits of stars, also did pastels of Jesus and one of Jesus with a child. These were reproduced for framing and I have them both. John was the artist commissioned to do the portraits of those chosen "Queen for a Day" in the 1940-50s. He lived at that time in San Fernando, California (more specifically, Sepulveda, now North Hills, California). Johnny was loved by the children of the neighborhood because of his happy, fun-loving attitude. I used to go and watch him draw for hours. He and his family had the first television in the neighborhood. Many nights you could find all of the neighborhood huddled around his little 9 or 10 inch screen, watching wrestling. That was about all that was on in those years.
—mcspry

My sister gave me the address of your article about Johnny Wheeldon. Around 1953 or 1954, when I was four years old, Johnny did a portrait of me. It is quite large (18"x24"), and is done in oil pastels. It is one of my prize possessions. Johnny and my dad were "rock hounds," and were always going up into the mountains looking for rocks and gems, and gold. Thank you for having this section about Johnny in your Web site. He was a wonderful friend, and a very talented artist. —CHRIXTINE

NOTE FROM MIKE: I recently located John Wheeldon's daughter and we talked about the paintings her father did for the Pilots.