Mariners pay tribute to TJHS baseball coach Joe Townsend

Family and friends gathered on the field before the game.

By Benjamin Ray • May 29, 2025 10:39 am

The true impact of Joe Townsend will never be quantified, but for those in attendance at the Seattle Mariners game on May 28, there was a sense of how important he was to the local baseball community.

Townsend, who died unexpectedly on April 29 at age 52, was Thomas Jefferson High School’s baseball and bowling coach.

With his daughter Mohagani in attendance, she delivered the game ball before the game started.

Through working with Baseball Beyond Borders, Townsend had connected with Seattle Mariners Manager Dan Wilson and majority owner John Stanton. After delivering the game ball, Dan Wilson, accompanied by King County Councilmember Pete von Reichbauer, handed Mohagani a bouquet of flowers in honor of Joe Townsend.

During the All-Star Week festivities, Townsend represented the Mariners as a coach in the Commissioner’s Cup, a youth tournament that was played across King County.

The Mariners held a moment of silence for Townsend and also played a video tribute, with a collage of photos on the MarinerVision Jumbotron in centerfield. Mariners President of Baseball Operations Kevin Martinez as well as Stanton were on the field during the tribute.

Thomas Jefferson baseball and bowling teams also were the human tunnel as the Mariners’ starters ran onto the field. While standing on the edge of the warning track down the first base line, Julio Rodriguez walked down the line shaking the hands of every single Thomas Jefferson athlete.

Townsend’s legacy will always be remembered in Federal Way and in the baseball community. He has brought together so many people and will continue to do so.