M’s: Four more years of Ichiro

Published 9:00 pm Thursday, December 18, 2003

SEATTLE – There’s no player like Ichiro Suzuki.

He’s got outstanding speed on the bases. He carefully selects pitches and slaps exciting infield hits. He puts a powerful arm and Gold Glove defense in right field. Then there’s his remarkable determination to excel.

Oh, did we mention his marketing worth?

The Seattle Mariners recognized the value of the man who arguably is the face of the franchise, signing Suzuki to a four-year contract extension Thursday. Terms were not disclosed.

“He clearly was very happy, and he doesn’t show emotion much,” said Suzuki’s agent, Tony Attanasio. “His attitude was one of satisfaction and elation. The club clearly demonstrated to him that they do like him, they appreciate him and they really wanted to keep him around.”

There wasn’t any question that he was leaving.

General manager Bill Bavasi said the only difficulty in crafting a contract was finding a way to measure Suzuki against other players when he does so many things differently – and much better, in many cases – than his peers.

The 30-year-old Suzuki was the AL’s MVP and Rookie of the Year in 2001. He has won Gold Gloves in each of his three major league seasons.

“He misses nothing,” manager Bob Melvin said. “He’s constantly working to make himself a better player. He does everything very, very well.”

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.

The team could have offered a one-year contract to avoid arbitration to Suzuki, who earned a base salary of just under $4.7 million last season.

However, a one-year deal wasn’t even an option when preliminary negotiations began months ago. The agreement involved every member of Seattle’s management team, up to and including majority owner Hiroshi Yamauchi.

Bavasi said the loss-of-face issue didn’t drive or even have an impact in talks. The front office simply focused on Suzuki’s considerable baseball talents and his status as “a premier player.”

“We aren’t going to deny he is special to us. We treated it that way,” Bavasi said. “But what he has earned, in a real nice contract, was earned through terrific play on the field.”

Bavasi was vacationing in New Orleans after the winter meetings but returned to Seattle on Wednesday for what Attanasio said was a “make-or-break day” in negotiations. He characterized it that way because Suzuki plans to return to Japan this weekend.

By any measure, Suzuki is an extraordinary player.

Eight of his 13 home runs last season put the Mariners ahead, and 20 of his 29 major league homers have tied a game or given Seattle a lead. His first career grand slam came July 18 at Kansas City, putting the Mariners up 6-3 in the ninth.

“His game isn’t to hit the ball out of ballpark,” Melvin said. “He just has a keen sense of when to do that.”

Suzuki will continue to hit leadoff, Melvin said, though he’s coming off a .312 season at the plate, his lowest average in his three years. He hit .321 in 2002 and .350 in his MVP season.

Suzuki’s 662 hits in his first three major league seasons rank second to Lloyd Waner’s 678 from 1927-29. He’s only the third player to record at least 200 hits in each of his first three seasons.

If Suzuki has a visible weakness, it’s his struggles at the plate late in the past two seasons. He hit .273 in September this fall and .248 in 2002.

“It’s a long season and you’re battling at the end,” Melvin said. “Last year was a lot like the year before, but this guy’s given everything he’s got every day. We all, as a group, tried to swing the bats a little more.”

Suzuki’s value to the franchise goes beyond numbers. Before they signed him, the Mariners paid more than $13 million just for negotiating rights. His signing helped the Mariners become enormously popular in his native Japan.

“What makes him special is the marketability,” Bavasi said. “There’s precious few players like that.”

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