On a day filled with big trades and rumored big trades this one qualifies as the most shocking: Jack Curry of YES Network reports that the Yankees have acquired Ichiro Suzuki from the Mariners for minor league pitchers D.J. Mitchell and Danny Farquhar.
Just last week Seattle general manager Jack Zduriencik insisted that Suzuki would not be traded and the Mariners wanted to re-sign the impending free agent, but according to a statement released by the team the former MVP asked for a trade “several weeks ago.”
Suzuki is in the midst of a career-worst season at age 38, hitting just .261 with a .288 on-base percentage and .353 slugging percentage, but the Yankees are obviously betting on him still have some gas left in the tank as a replacement for Brett Gardner.
Anything can happen in a two-month window and obviously Suzuki can get hot in a hurry. Or at least the Ichiro of old could get hot in a hurry. Dating back to the beginning of last season he’s hit just .268 with a .302 on-base percentage and .342 slugging percentage in 1,144 plate appearances spread over 256 games.
Mitchell was the Yankees’ 10th-round pick in 2008 and made his big-league debut in May at age 25, projecting as a potential back-of-the-rotation starter or long reliever. Farquhar has similarly modest upside as a middle reliever and two weeks ago the Yankees passed him through waivers unclaimed.
In other words, the Mariners got a pair of non-prospects for Suzuki.
UPDATE: How’s this for drama? Ichiro will be in the Yankees’ lineup tonight ... against the Mariners, in Seattle.