San Francisco Giants: the man behind Lou Seal

May 3, 2013; San Francisco, CA, USA; Kirk Hammett and James Hetfield of Metallica pose with San Francisco Giants mascot Lou Seal before the game against the Los Angeles Dodgers at AT&T Park. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports

If you are anything like me, you are dying for baseball to start and the light at the end of the off season tunnel is an actual baseball game on the radio this Tuesday, March 3rd. You’ve been clinging to every tweet from the beat writers, every Kruk and Kuip show on KNBR and every article you can find that has meaningful baseball content. Today I found something else to cling to: our goofy and lovable mascot Lou Seal.

San Francisco Giants fans are known for being a very passionate bunch who live and breath for our team. We love guys like Buster Posey and Hunter Pence for their amazing talents but also their love for the game and commitment to excellence on and off the field. Thanks to the Hulu Original Series “Behind the Mask” I’ve learned that our awesome mascot Luigi Francisco Seal (I bet you didn’t know that was his full name!) is just as passionate as the fans and just as committed to excellence as the players.

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The documentary series gives you a unique perspective into the lives of 4 different mascots and their different journeys, including the story of Joel Zimei who plays the role of Lou Seal at every San Francisco Giants home game. The thing I loved the most about this story is that he hasn’t ever missed a home game in 16 seasons with the San Francisco Giants. This is the longest streak for any major league mascot.

I’m not sure how many people have ever given a second thought to the person that wears the Lou Seal costume but it was really cool to learn about the guy responsible for our fun loving pal Lou Seal and how much he has invested in his job for 16 years.

I’ll admit, I would have never started watching the show if it wasn’t for the picture of Lou Seal on the show page but I was pleasantly surprised with how much I enjoyed all 4 stories, not just Lou Seal’s. I would highly recommend checking out the series not just for San Francisco Giants fans but any sports fans.

And the next time you see Lou Seal, give him your best high five and tell him thanks for all of the World Series luck he’s brought us. When you watch the show you will know why!