Ichiro takes the field in Seattle — as a Yankee *

No Los Angeles angle. Or media, politics or business. Just a sports moment. Earlier today, the Seattle Mariners traded their franchise player, Ichiro Suzuki, to the visiting New York Yankees. He took the field tonight before the former home fans. Twitter photo by Marc Carig.

Ichiro's performance as the best player to come to the United States from Japan has been pretty amazing for 11-plus years. A perfect match of player and city, but it was time to go. ESPN writer David Schoenfield: "I wish I was at Safeco Field tonight so I could stand and cheer for Ichiro Suzuki..."

* Video update: Ichiro comes to bat, gets a hand, bows.