we'll take him.

My first instinct was to criticize The Onion for such a lame piece. Then I saw that this wasn't The Onion at all.

According to the Times, there are clubhouse complaints that Ichiro should have rested to heal injuries

wow, that's the complete inverse of what you normally hear.

Somebody mouthing off about knocking a guy out is not the same thing as actually considering physical harm.

wow, that's the complete inverse of what you normally hear.

Unless you're Cal Ripken Jr.

According to the Times, there are clubhouse complaints that Ichiro should have rested to heal injuries

Isn't it kind of up to the management structure to do that part if the player won't himself....

Those Mariners should worry less about Ichiro and more about figuring out how not to suck.

MSNBC making #### up, what else is new?

"The bastard won't take time to heal, so we should HURT him!" "Yeah!"

Whatever. You hear a lot of lame stuff in a clubhouse like Seattle's: not a good team, some misguided expectations going into the season, lots of turnover among veterans as the ship changes course in mid-season, an outsider superstar not carrying the team to success, etc. Grow up.

And anyone reporting this without including a bit of context (such as describing who is talking beyond "insider") also needs to read up on professionalism.

Uh...oh! The Mariners just signed Tonya Harding to a three-day contract.

"an outsider superstar not carrying the team to success".

Can someone explain to me how a guy with a 2008 OPS+ of 103 and a lifetime OPS+ of 117 is a "super-star". I have never understand the Ichiro love. I understand he is a cool guy, with the one-name thing going and the neato stretching exercise, but all of the singles to LF aside, the limited walks and relative lack of power from a corner outfielder make him...pretty good?

I have a list of Met RP that I would like taken care of.

But he gives an awesome all star pregame speech!

Uh...oh! The Mariners just signed Tonya Harding to a three-day contract.

How Snowy! I guess they really are looking to put him on ice.

I think going after Ichiro would be a mistake. He'd probably beat their asses.

I think going after Ichiro would be a mistake. He'd probably beat their asses.

They Call Him Bruce.

I think going after Ichiro would be a mistake. He'd probably beat their asses.

Really, after seeing what he did to Lucy Liu in "Kill Bill", you'd think they'd know better.

Can someone explain to me how a guy with a 2008 OPS+ of 103 and a lifetime OPS+ of 117 is a "super-star".

add in his terrific outfield play and baserunning (seriously, look at his CS%) and you have a guy that, when not in a down year such as this, is one of the best outfielders in the game

Seattle teammate: "Hey, Ichiro. What are you doing after the game tonight?"

Ichiro: (in Japanese) "Nothing much. Get some dinner, get to bed early."

Ichiro's translator: "Your mom."



So, Seattle was predicted to be in the playoff hunt pre-season, they had serious clubhouse issues, and are now finishing the season with 100 losses. If that's not proof positive of how essential team chemistry is...

The old "blame the best player on the team" schtick.

Can someone explain to me how a guy with a 2008 OPS+ of 103 and a lifetime OPS+ of 117 is a "super-star". I have never understand the Ichiro love. I understand he is a cool guy, with the one-name thing going and the neato stretching exercise, but all of the singles to LF aside, the limited walks and relative lack of power from a corner outfielder make him...pretty good?

Well, for one thing, he's really a decent center fielder who seems to prefer playing in right. I guess I think of his situation as analogous to Alex Rodriguez's--I still think of him a shortstop playing out of position for mostly stupid managerial reasons.

Is your claim to not understand why Ichiro is a star genuine, or are you just trying to make a rhetorical trick? If it's the latter fine, but if it's the former, I think this may be one of the extremely rare instances where it's perfectly legit to say "get your nose out of a spreadsheet and go watch a game!"

So, Seattle was predicted to be in the playoff hunt pre-season, they had serious clubhouse issues, and are now finishing the season with 100 losses. If that's not proof positive of how essential team chemistry is...

... then isolated anecdotes don't prove anything anymore!

add in his terrific outfield play and baserunning (seriously, look at his CS%) and you have a guy that, when not in a down year such as this, is one of the best outfielders in the game

The non-SB baserunning is very good too, his throwing arm has been well above average, and he almost never hits into double plays - probably about 10 fewer DP per year than an average player would have in his opportunities. I think he reaches on error more often than average as well. Add all this up, and you take a guy who's in the +10 to +15 range (offensive runs above average) and push him into the +25-+30 range.

But deserved or not, this looks like a bad situation for Ichiro. Considering how bad the Mariners are, it might make sense to keep Ichiro and get rid of all his teammates that have problems with him (assuming Felix is not one of them, Beltre is a FA after 2009 so don't worry about him). But more likely, Ichiro will need a change of scenery. Maybe he'll be a Yankee in 2009.

"The old "blame the best player on the team" schtick."

I didn't see any mention of Felix Hernandez or Raul Ibanez; oh, I am sorry: "Felix!" and "Raul!"

Turns out they really did try to hurt him but they suck at that too.

I didn't read the article, but from what I'm gathering, they don't like him because he won't take time off to heal injuries? I figured if a large portion of your team wants to physically harm you, it's a result of prima donna antics like wearing gaudy furs and insisting on having exotic animals roaming throughout the clubhouse on a day-to-day basis.

I figured if a large portion of your team wants to physically harm you, it's a result of prima donna antics like wearing gaudy furs and insisting on having exotic animals roaming throughout the clubhouse on a day-to-day basis.

So that's why my co-workers keep giving me the evil eye.

Speaking of the Mariners, Francisco Rodriguez reduced his magic number over the Mariners to 1 last night. He's clinched no worse than a tie with Seattle.

#25, that's "KING Felix" and Rauuuuuuuuul" ...

Uh...oh! The Mariners just signed Tonya Harding to a three-day contract.

Day 1: Purchase baton.
Day 2: Club Ichiro! with it.
Day 3: Produce sex tape with Chuck Armstrong.

I figured if a large portion of your team wants to physically harm you, it's a result of prima donna antics like wearing gaudy furs and insisting on having exotic animals roaming throughout the clubhouse on a day-to-day basis.

That isn't a nice thing to say about Pedro's little friend.

Ichiro would be able to defeat them all.

"Turns out they really did try to hurt him but they suck at that too."

Based on prior history, the safest person in a clubhouse where Richie Sexon is trying to hit someone specific is the person Richie Sexon is trying to hit.

Zumsteg claims the “knock him out” guy is Carlos Silva:

Linkie

I think going after Ichiro would be a mistake. He'd probably beat their asses.

Just like that little dude at the end of the Scorpio Simpsons episode.

Ichiro would be able to defeat them all.

....with the zeal of a challenger!

Zumsteg claims the “knock him out” guy is Carlos Silva:

Even if he is claiming that (Silva could be read as a hypothetical), he's not backing it up with anything.

The Mariners are starting to remind me of the New England Patriots of the early '90s--an utterly sucktastic team that's completely dysfunctional and unlikeable even apart from the losing.

Zumsteg claims the “knock him out” guy is Carlos Silva:

Linkie

I think that's a Trubyesque kind of reading you're doing there, unless Zumsteg has written about this somewhere else.

Just like that little dude at the end of the Scorpio Simpsons episode.

Nerd alert:

It was the Marge pretzel episode, not the Scorpio episode.

"They Call Him Bruce."


Best. Movies. Ever.

Ichiro would be able to defeat them all.

I just flashed to the end scene of the Jet Li movie The One. Ichiro looking down at the others, yelling "I Ichiro, I no one's #####, you all mine!" and proceeds to just beat up everybody else.

I think that's a Trubyesque kind of reading you're doing there, unless Zumsteg has written about this somewhere else.

Check the last para of that post (I misidentified the writer -- it was Cameron, not Zumsteg). They have both written multiple times about Silva's lashing out at teammates throughout the year. I would say it's more than a blind guess, less than a cite.

Check the last para of that post (I misidentified the writer -- it was Cameron, not Zumsteg). They have both written multiple times about Silva's lashing out at teammates throughout the year. I would say it's more than a blind guess, less than a cite.

I read the last paragraph, and it read more like a "insert any crappy Mariner here" as an example rather than a specific claim that Silva is the source. But if they've written about that before, and I allowed for the possibility, then it probably is more of an educated guess.

It was the Marge pretzel episode, not the Scorpio episode.

You, sir, are absolutely correct. <hangs head in shame>

So, Seattle was predicted to be in the playoff hunt pre-season, they had serious clubhouse issues, and are now finishing the season with 100 losses. If that's not proof positive of how essential team chemistry is...

Correlation does not equal causation.

The bad season could just as easily have caused the bad team chemistry.

You, sir, are absolutely correct. <hangs head in shame>

Actually, I believe the phrase you're looking for is: "Forgiveness, please!" (or "Fogivaness, prease!" if you want to say it like the character did).

I read the last paragraph, and it read more like a "insert any crappy Mariner here" as an example rather than a specific claim that Silva is the source. But if they've written about that before, and I allowed for the possibility, then it probably is more of an educated guess.

Silva has been quoted in the Seattle papers, on the records, as lashing out at his teammates. So it's not just "insert any crappy Mariner here".

If it's just Silva they can just release him. It hurts to be on the hook for 3 years and 36 million, but not as much as paying that money and having to put Silva in your rotation.

If it's just Silva they can just release him. It hurts to be on the hook for 3 years and 36 million, but not as much as paying that money and having to put Silva in your rotation.

I find it fascinating that this past off-season, Carlos Silva was able to wrangle a 4 year/48 million dollar deal, while Kyle Lohse despite having a similar track record, and being the same age was only able to get a 1 year/4.25 million dollar deal.

Now this offseason someone will probably give Lohse a Silva-esque deal, and I wouldn't be surprised if he went Silva-esque next year.

I don’t care what a bunch of replacement level, washed up, overpaid and entitled career losers think about Ichiro’s efforts or value, and neither should the M’s front office. If Carlos Silva thinks Ichiro is selfish, then maybe Carlos Silva should look into being more selfish and pitching well enough to win a game once in a while.

The point seems to me to be less about Silva, or about guessing which player it is, than about the fact that the majority of the players are worth much less than Ichiro is and shouldn't be complaining about someone who isn't the reason for the teams failures.

"The old "blame the best player on the team" schtick."

I didn't see any mention of Felix Hernandez or Raul Ibanez; oh, I am sorry: "Felix!" and "Raul!"

Of course, Raul spent the first four months of last year with the same injury also, and played through it and played abysmally.

And yes, the worst defensive LF in the AL is a better overall ballplayer than Ichiro Suzuki. . . .

Come on. No Hawk Harrelson? Mercy!

So, Seattle was predicted to be in the playoff hunt pre-season, they had serious clubhouse issues, and are now finishing the season with 100 losses. If that's not proof positive of how essential team chemistry is...

Seattle was predicted to be in the playoff hunt by mainstream writers who were taken in by a lucky win total in 2007 and the Bedard trade. Various projections (Zips (post 55) and Cairo) had them under 80 wins.

Seattle was predicted to be in the playoff hunt by mainstream writers who were taken in by a lucky win total in 2007 and the Bedard trade. Various projections (Zips (post 55) and Cairo) had them under 80 wins.

Are you saying Steve Phillips may not know what he's talking about?

Ichiro is a heck of a player with great bat control and batting eye who could increase his value by taking more walks, but that would depress his all important hit totals. He'd be more valuable in centerfield, but doesn't want to play it for some reason even though he did in Japan.

So how is it surprising that his team-mates find him selfish?