Fastball

Mariners Got Unexpected Help From Franchise Icon In Tune-Up For ALDS

Number 51 is 51... but don't tell him that
Jackson Roberts|
Aug 10, 2025; Seattle, Washington, USA; Seattle Mariners former outfielder Ichiro Suzuki (51) exits the dugout to throw out the ceremonial first pitch before a game against the Tampa Bay Rays at T-Mobile Park. Mandatory Credit: Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images
Aug 10, 2025; Seattle, Washington, USA; Seattle Mariners former outfielder Ichiro Suzuki (51) exits the dugout to throw out the ceremonial first pitch before a game against the Tampa Bay Rays at T-Mobile Park. Mandatory Credit: Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images | Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images

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Seattle Mariners

The Seattle Mariners are doing their very best to stay locked in over their five-day postseason layover.

After earning a first-round bye to the American League Division Series, the Mariners know they'll be the next test subjects of the "rest vs. rust" debate. But on Wednesday, as mnay teams do while awaiting their next postseason game these days, they held an intrasquad scrimmage.

What was unexpected about that scrimmage, however, was one of the names penciled into the lineup card.

Ichiro Suzuki participates in Mariners intrasquad game

Ichiro Suzuki
Aug 9, 2025; Seattle, Washington, USA; Seattle Mariners former outfielder Ichiro Suzuki speaks during a ceremony to retire his number before a game against the Tampa Bay Rays at T-Mobile Park. Mandatory Credit: Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images | Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images

There were two right fielders partaking in Wednesday's game between the Mariners and themselves: 28-year-old platoon outfielder Dominic Canzone and 51-year-old Baseball Hall of Famer Ichiro Suzuki.

Ichiro's presence was a delight to Mariners fans on social media, but also to the Mariners themselves, as Julio Rodríguez gladly exclaimed before the scrimmage.

"He knows I'm the center fielder,” Rodríguez said, per Daniel Kramer of MLB.com. “I don't think age really matters a lot between the lines. But I'm still going to let him catch one probably.”

Ichiro did not take at-bats in the game, as the Mariners wanted to make sure all their players who will be on the ALDS roster would be well-prepared. That may have disappointed some of hte 5,000 fans in attendance, but it was hard to argue with the logic.

However, when a ball got hit to the baseball legend, he not only handled it with aplomb and showed off his rifle arm throwing back into the infield, but he also gestured toward the Seattle dugout with Rodríguez's trademark "no fly zone" signal.

This is what baseball is all about. We'd love to say there should be more of this, but how many other 51-year-olds can still move like Ichiro? It's no surprise, given that he stayed in the big leagues until 2019, but the man truly is an ageless wonder.

And if the Mariners down the winner of Thursday's Wild Card Series between the Detroit Tigers and Cleveland Guardians next week, they owe their Hall of Famer some major thanks.

More MLB: What Mariners Should Be Rooting For Entering Game 2 Of AL Wild Card Series

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Jackson Roberts
JACKSON ROBERTS

Jackson Roberts is a former Division III All-Region DH who now writes and talks about sports for a living. A Bay Area native and a graduate of Swarthmore College and the Newhouse School at Syracuse University, Jackson makes his home in North Jersey. He grew up rooting for the Red Sox, Patriots, and Warriors, and he recently added the Devils to his sports fandom mosaic.

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