 Transaction
Analysis
Mariners sign Ichiro Suzuki for 3 years, $17 million
So the Mariners did
in fact sign Japanese star and 7-time Japanese
batting title winner Ichiro Suzuki. This is one
of the harder deals to analyze. The fact is, we
have no idea how he will fare facing major league
pitching. We also don’t know how the
5’9" outfielder will handle the
American schedule as no position player from
Japan ever has. Remember, in Japan they play a
130-game schedule compared to the 162 games
played here. Also, traveling cross-country in
Japan isn’t nearly as grueling as doing it
in America. The reason this move is so risky is
that it is reported he will be making in the $5-6
million range for the next three seasons. Add to
that the $13 million they have to pay his old
team, the Orix Blue Wave, and all of a sudden you
are talking about a player who hasn’t even faced a
major league pitch costing about $10
million per season. If this has any negative
effect on their ability to sign Alex Rodriguez,
then it becomes a very questionable move. This
has potential to be a great move or a horrible one; we’ll find out
which one it is soon enough.
Triple Steal Rating: Single
Mariners Team Page
More Transactions
TripleSteal Rating
Scale:
Grand Slam - A can't miss move; automatically makes
the team considerably better.
Home Run - A great move;
will help the team now and down the road.
Triple - A good move; plugs
a temporary hole or will help in the future.
Double - An average move;
team will get what they paid for.
Single - A head-scratcher;
could help, but we definitely don't see how.
Out - A panic move; tells
fans "hey, we're trying..."
Double Play - A disaster;
will make fans angry just thinking about it.
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