SEATTLE (AP) -Ichiro Suzuki smiled. He had his standard answer ready, even before an interpreter began reciting the question.
What’s up with your new Mariners contract?
“You’ll find out sometime,” Suzuki said Thursday.
The seven-time All-Star was grinning at the commotion from news this week that he has agreed to a five-year extension. It would keep the franchise cornerstone in Seattle until age 39 and take him off the upcoming free-agent market.
Details on the contract were still being completed Thursday, and Suzuki was to complete a physical examination before the deal became official, according to a team official who requested anonymity because the negotiations weren’t complete.
Mariners manager John McLaren said he hasn’t heard anything about an imminent announcement and a team spokesman said the club had nothing to announce Thursday.
Suzuki hit the first inside-the-park home run in All-Star game history Tuesday night, winning unanimous MVP honors and helping the American League to a 5-4 victory.
He walked out of the dugout before the Mariners’ game against Detroit on Thursday night and tipped his cap to acknowledge the crowd’s standing ovation when he was recognized for the MVP performance.
The 33-year-old Suzuki is in the final year of a $41 million, four-year contract.
He set the single-season record for hits with 262 in 2004. He has gotten at least 200 hits in each of his first six years in the majors.
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