Yeah. Most everyone in Seattle figured that was all just posturing how they handled him this season.
I'm not sure how I feel about it. Sure, it's cool to return to your home country playing for an MLB team. But in reality, he didn't really play last season and is no longer a meaningful contributor.
The Mariners have some work to do to be competitive, and holding open a roster spot for a dog and pony show in Japan kinda shows to me where the front office is going.
-Mike
