Thursday, December 18, 2003
44, HE MAKES T-LONG LOOK VERY SILLY
Ichiro. 4 years. 44 million.
So there you go. Ichiro's new deal is 4 years, $44 million, with a $6 million dollar signing bonus.
I'm not going to say too much about the deal itself until I see the exact details (how much he will make a season), but on the surface, it is obvious that this is not just a baseball-only deal. Since I worked for the Mariners merchandising department for two seasons(2000 and 2002), I know the power of Ichiro when it comes to merchandise. Hell, the cash registers were louder than Ichiro's second half production the last two seasons.
The Mariners avoided Saturday night's salary arbitration deadline with Suzuki. To do otherwise would have looked unfavorable in Japanese culture, sending a message that club officials were unable to determine his value.
"In the culture of Ichiro and others like him, it's something disconcerting for someone other than the club to determine his worth," Attanasio said.
I really don't want to sound disrespectful here, but can we please get off the whole "Japanese respect" deal? Ichiro has said that he would feel insulted if the Mariners took him to arbitration. Boo hoo, Ichiro. There are a lot of things worse in life than being insulted by a baseball franchise.
I'll say it again, I was insulted by every Ichiro groundout in the second halves of 2002 and 2003. I was also insulted by the lack of fire in this team period. And hell, this offseason is pretty insulting.
For those of you who say that I should lay off Ichiro's lack of production in the second half, too bad, so sad. Everybody loves Ichiro. I like Ichiro myself. But he has to be held accountable as well for the M's collapses the last two seasons.
One thing is for sure: He better produce the next four seasons. And I don't mean just the first four months of the season either. I'm talking April to October. In some cases, March to October, if the MLB season starts in March again in the coming years.
That isn't too much to ask out of a guy who will be making 44 million the next four years is it?
Finally, save up your Christmas money. It's time to go buy those Ichi-Jocks and Ichi-Thongs, coming to your favorite Mariners Team Stores in the spring.
"KILL" BILL: 10 GAMES BACK, SO WHAT???
So there you go. Ichiro's new deal is 4 years, $44 million, with a $6 million dollar signing bonus.
I'm not going to say too much about the deal itself until I see the exact details (how much he will make a season), but on the surface, it is obvious that this is not just a baseball-only deal. Since I worked for the Mariners merchandising department for two seasons(2000 and 2002), I know the power of Ichiro when it comes to merchandise. Hell, the cash registers were louder than Ichiro's second half production the last two seasons.
The Mariners avoided Saturday night's salary arbitration deadline with Suzuki. To do otherwise would have looked unfavorable in Japanese culture, sending a message that club officials were unable to determine his value.
"In the culture of Ichiro and others like him, it's something disconcerting for someone other than the club to determine his worth," Attanasio said.
I really don't want to sound disrespectful here, but can we please get off the whole "Japanese respect" deal? Ichiro has said that he would feel insulted if the Mariners took him to arbitration. Boo hoo, Ichiro. There are a lot of things worse in life than being insulted by a baseball franchise.
I'll say it again, I was insulted by every Ichiro groundout in the second halves of 2002 and 2003. I was also insulted by the lack of fire in this team period. And hell, this offseason is pretty insulting.
For those of you who say that I should lay off Ichiro's lack of production in the second half, too bad, so sad. Everybody loves Ichiro. I like Ichiro myself. But he has to be held accountable as well for the M's collapses the last two seasons.
One thing is for sure: He better produce the next four seasons. And I don't mean just the first four months of the season either. I'm talking April to October. In some cases, March to October, if the MLB season starts in March again in the coming years.
That isn't too much to ask out of a guy who will be making 44 million the next four years is it?
Finally, save up your Christmas money. It's time to go buy those Ichi-Jocks and Ichi-Thongs, coming to your favorite Mariners Team Stores in the spring.
"KILL" BILL: 10 GAMES BACK, SO WHAT???
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