Ichiro Pumped To Return To The Bronx

From the NY Times:

"Re-signing for the Yankees has awakened a fresh determination in me," the 10-times All Star told Japanese media after a workout in Kobe.

"This is a team that can select A-Rod as a pinch-hitter we're talking about," he added, referring to fellow future Hall of Famer Alex Rodriguez.

Ichiro's future with the Yankees had hung in the balance, the player unhappy that talks on a new deal were taking so long and threatening to negotiate with other clubs.

However, after agreeing terms on a deal worth $13 million over two years, Ichiro is expected to be the team's starting right fielder this season.

"It is an absolutely unique team," said Ichiro, who reportedly turned down more money from other MLB teams to remain in the Yankees pinstripes.

"Being able to take my place alongside such players has been something I have thinking about."

One of the things I'm really looking forward to for the 2013 season is watching a full season of Ichiro.

Ichiro Coming Back For One More

Ichiro Deal Expected In the Next Few Days

Rosenthal: Yankees Likely To Resign Ichiro

From Ken Rosenthal:

Ichiro Suzuki enjoyed playing for the Yankees so much, he likely will be back with them again.

The Yankees are showing strong interest in re-signing the free-agent outfielder, according to major league sources.

“They are all over him,” one source says. “That (a deal with Ichiro) will happen.”

That's good to hear..... Rosenthal also mentioned that the Yankees are still exploring the idea of trading Curtis Granderson.

They Haven't Forgotten About Ichiro

As I've said all winter, I think it's very important that they bring Ichiro back.

Ichiro is Becoming Impatient

From George King:

Ichiro Suzuki’s willingness to wait on the Yankees has declined to the point where the veteran outfielder is talking to other teams.

“At the beginning we talked a lot but since that time, zero,’’ agent Tony Attanasio said of discussions with the Yankees. “As far as we are concerned we don’t care what the Yankees do. We have had conversations with multiple clubs. If we see something we like he will go through with it.’

In a week’s time, Ichiro has completely reversed field.

“There has been a lot of interest [from other teams] but he enjoyed playing for the Yankees so much it’s hard for him to say no to the Yankees,’’ Attanasio said a week ago yesterday. “His preference is to stay there instead of going someplace else, but we’ll wait and see.’’

Of course, Ichiro’s reversal doesn’t mean he can’t return to The Bronx, where he was a fan favorite. Thanks to a torrid 14-for-20 stretch over five games in mid-September, he batted .322 in 67 games as a Yankee.

Nor did general manager Brian Cashman eliminate Ichiro from the list of outfield candidates he will talk to about replacing Nick Swisher in right field.

“I’m really not in position to comment, but our focus was first on pitching and see the amount of dollars we needed to secure pitching,’’ Cashman said. “Now we’ll focus on players who want to talk to us.’’

Letting Ichiro sign somewhere else would be a major mistake. That being said, I understand why the Yankees were focused on pitching in the last few weeks. Hopefully, now that they can turn their attention to right field they'll get the Ichiro situation settled quickly.

Sherman: Yanks not in on Justin Upton

From Joel Sherman:

The Yankees are so serious about dropping under that $189 million luxury tax threshold for 2014 that, according to a source briefed on their plans, they would not even do a two-year contract in the $20 million range with Torii Hunter, The Post has learned.

Though Arizona’s Justin Upton has become available at the GM Meetings, a person involved in discussions said, “The Yankees are not on him.”

...

Upton, a talented, but enigmatic player, has three years at $38.5 million left on his contract and would count as just $8.54 million (the average annual value of his deal) toward the luxury tax payroll. Nevertheless, even committing those kind of dollars plus the cost-effective prospects necessary to land a player of Upton’s ilk currently is against the Yankees strategy. The Rangers and Rays (who are losing Upton’s brother, B.J., to free agency) were considered the early favorites to get Justin Upton, according to a person involved in talks.

The Yankees want to solve right field by committing as few (maybe zero) dollars to 2014 as possible. In fact, if they need to go to two years to keep Kuroda (which they might not agree to do either), it would all but assure not one cent of 2014 money is put toward right field.

Because the Yankees have become a place veterans like to play because of the promise of championship contention and a large bloc of like-minded, similar-aged players, Hunter could follow the lead of vets such as Eric Chavez and Raul Ibanez and spurn better offers to play in The Bronx on a one-year deal.

I still can't figure out how the Yankees expect to compete and get the salary under that $189M mark. Either way, I don't mind the Yanks passing on Upton or Hunter if he actually demands two years. I still think the best move would be to bring back Ichiro on a one-year deal if that's possible.

Ichiro Interested In Returning To Yanks

From Joel Sherman:

The Giants were working hard to obtain Ichiro Suzuki before the Yankees did in late July and probably would have interest in the free agent this winter. But a person close to Ichiro told me he strongly wants to stay with the Yankees because he so enjoyed playing in a professional, winning atmosphere with so many contemporaries near his age range.

The friend said he can’t imagine money being a factor, noting that to make matters work when he wanted to be in Seattle, Ichiro deferred $5 million a year on his last long-term contract. The implication was that a one-year deal, perhaps with an option, in the $5 million-to-$8 million range might get it done.

In 67 games for the Yankees, the veteran hit .322/.340/.454, stole 14 bases so to me bringing him back is a very easy decision.

Ichiro: Being part of Yankees-Red Sox is like a dream

From Ray Monell:

The experience [of being part of Yankees-Red Sox], Suzuki told Yahoo! Contributor Network through his interpreter, felt like a dream.

"I was very excited," he said after New York routed Boston 10-3. "My first game at Yankee Stadium [as a Yankee] was against the Boston Red Sox.

"In Japan, you grab your cheek to see if it's real or not, if you're dreaming. That's really how I feel right now."

...

"I used to have a Yankees uniform as a fan; I wore that in Japan," he said. "Also, in the 2001 All-Star Game, I traded jerseys with Bernie Williams, so I put that on before.
"Obviously it's very special."

Ichrio also told MLB.com on Friday night that he hasn't had this much fun playing baseball in a "long time," and that the stadium was the type of environment he was "hoping to play in" when he looked at potentially being traded. Sounds like someone's enjoying life as a Yankee.

Ichiro Excited To Play In The Bronx

From the AP Via the New York Post:

In his past visits to Yankee Stadium, Ichiro Suzuki was ready and actually enjoyed the heckling that came from the Bleacher Creatures.

He's also ready for a new experience on Friday night when the newest Yankees outfielder makes his debut at home against the Red Sox: the roll call.

"I hope the fans do call my name, but I need to get there and play to the ability where hopefully the fans will call my name," Suzuki said through his interpreter on Wednesday.

Before the series finale in Seattle on Wednesday, Suzuki that he's excited about his first game in pinstripes, when the slumping Yankees open a weekend series against Boston. While there will be plenty of attention on his New York debut, it'll also be a welcomed change from the oddity of this week that saw Suzuki move from one side of Safeco Field to the other and make his Yankees debut against the team he spent his first 11 seasons with.

"I think once all the attention is gone I can settle in and relax a little bit," he said.

...

"When I go to the stadium obviously if the fans feel that way toward me I'm grateful but I need to prove myself and I need to play to a level the fans can enjoy and think highly of my play," Suzuki said. "I really feel like when I get there I want to show the fans what I can do."

If I may make a suggestion, he should give the RF bleachers a nice bow when they call his name. They'll love that.

Also, it's pretty admirable that he feels he needs to prove himself to us Yankees fans. He's the greatest pure hitter of this generation so he really doesn't, but still it's great that he cares.

Ichiro Made Concessions To Join Yankees

From Wallace Matthews:

Ichiro Suzuki apparently wanted the New York Yankees even more than the Yankees wanted him.

Before completing a trade to acquire the Japanese star, the Yankees spelled out a list of conditions to Ichiro, a former American League MVP and two-time batting champion.

Ichiro would be asked to switch positions, hit at the bottom of the lineup and possibly sit against left-handed pitching.

"He was fully educated on all our requirements," Yankees general manager Brian Cashman told ESPNNewYork.com. "One by one, every box got ticked off."

Ichiro had requested a trade from the last-place Seattle Mariners, the only big league team he had ever played for after coming to the U.S. from Japan as a 27-year-old in 2001. But the Yankees were not sure the 10-time All-Star would be willing to make all the adjustments they required.

After Ichiro agreed to the conditions -- and waived his no-trade clause -- Cashman and Mariners GM Jack Zduriencik completed the deal that was initiated in a phone call between Mariners president Chuck Armstrong and Randy Levine, his counterpart with the Yankees.

"(Ichiro) was asked to make a lot of sacrifices," Cashman said. "And he agreed to all of them."

Glad to see he really wants to be here. That's always a huge plus.

Also, here is how Yankees scouts view the veteran:

But the consensus among Yankees scouts was that Ichiro was "bored" playing for the last-place Mariners and was "playing down to his surroundings." The Yankees hope this situation will reverse itself with the 38-year-old Ichiro suddenly shifted to a first-place team with a legitimate hope of reaching the World Series.

Yankees scouts reported that Ichiro's athleticism and defensive abilities were undiminished, another factor that influenced New York to take the leap of faith that Ichiro could return to a semblance of his former effectiveness.

And having parted with just right-handed pitchers D.J. Mitchell and Danny Farquhar, the Yankees have added a potential superstar to their already potent lineup.

"We think (Ichiro) is a reincarnation of Brett Gardner," Cashman said. "He's a reproduction of what we lost."

I happen to agree. I think Ichiro will be a great fit for this team as they head down the stretch.

Yankees Trade For Ichiro (Updated)

(Update 8:33 PM) Ichiro will be wearing #31.

(Update 8:10 PM) To make room for Ichiro on the roster, the Yankees designated Dewayne Wise for assignment. Wise, who was a very solid bench player for this Yankees team, hit .262/.286/.492 in 63 ABs. You may have noticed that his numbers are actually better than Ichiro's (.261/.288/.353), but again, the hope has to be that he can get reenergized playing for a contender.

Nice move by Cashman. Ichiro may not be the player he once was, but I have to believe that a chance to play in The Pinstripes, with a chance to get a ring, may just be the thing he needs to get that spark back. Tonight should be pretty interesting.

But what number is he going to wear?