The Seattle Mariners offense will likely have a slightly different look to it in 2025.
Mariners President of Baseball Operations Jerry Dipoto and General Manager Justin Hollander have both identified the infield as a position of need this offseason.
One in-house player who could factor into the starting lineup in 2025 is Ryan Bliss. But Bliss’ most important task this offseason isn’t preparing for a potential starting role for Seattle; it’s helping those in need.
When Hurricane Helene made landfall on Sept. 26, it affected several areas around the coastline states such as Florida and South Carolina.
One of those areas included the town of Greeneville, Tenn., the town where Bliss’ fiancee, Katelynn Hadjopoulos, is from.
Greeneville is a small town of just 15,000 people. Many citizens either lost or saw significant damage to their homes due to Hurricane Helene, but didn’t qualify for initial federal assistance due to not living on the coast.
Hadjopoulos and Bliss set up a GoFundMe on Oct. 10, which has since raised $6,585 of it’s $10,000 goal.
Bliss went on the MLB Network on Tuesday to talk more about his and his fiancee’s efforts to raise money for the small town:
“(My fiancee’s) whole town got wiped out. … For three weeks to a month, the water plant was destroyed, so they had no running water. People’s houses are just no longer there. And people are just without their things. We’re building this GoFundMe and we’re just trying to help out as best as possible. We’re across the country right now, but I think we’re just trying to raise awareness and show people that other towns were hit, and just doing our best to help while we can.”
In addition to the GoFundMe, Bliss is also raising money on his Instagram account (@rib8) via auction. Bliss will be sending a signed bat and a signed pair of cleats to two individuals who make the largest donation to his and Hadjopoulos’ hurricane relief fund by 5 p.m. PT on Sunday (Nov. 24).
