Fantasy Baseball 2018: Mariners bring back Ichiro

The Mariners are bringing back longtime outfielder Ichiro on a one-year deal. Can the 44-year-old rebound and be a serviceable fantasy option?

The Seattle Mariners, like the rest of the American League West, improved their team this offseason. With weeks before Opening Day, the Mariners are dealing with a few injuries to their outfielders. They decided to bring back team hero Ichiro to fill in the gap. How will he do in fantasy?

The Mariners would have had Ben Gamel, Mitch Haniger and Dee Gordon as their starting outfielders. But, that won’t be the case. Gamel will miss four to six weeks with an oblique strain. The team hoped he would miss just a couple of days but the MRI revealed something a little more serious.

Haniger is also dealing with an injury to his right hand. MLB.com reporter Greg Johns said Haniger will miss four to five days and return to action sometime next week. While he may be on track to return, this is something to monitor throughout the season.

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Ichiro will serve as the Mariners starting left fielder while Gamel recovers. I don’t think he performs like the Ichiro we’re used to seeing.

I do, however, think we can get something similar to his time with the Yankees. He hit .281 with a total of 49 steals in his two-plus seasons in New York.

The Mariners have a solid lineup, though the recent injuries don’t say so. Ichiro will likely hit ninth, before Gordon and Jean Segura. If he gets on base, those two will be able to drive him home.

ZIPS projects Ichiro making 250 plate appearances. With his playing time likely to go away when Game returns, that seems like an appropriate number. Unless you play in the deepest of leagues, Ichiro should remain undrafted. Even with a starting job, for at least a couple of weeks, there are plenty of other outfielders available.

Ichiro did not play well last season. He was relegated to just 196 at-bats, the lowest of his career. He finished with a .255/.318/.332 line and three home runs, 20 RBIs, 19 runs and one steal with the Miami Marlins. The team didn’t need his services as much with who they had in their outfield.

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Ichiro returning to Seattle is more of a feel-good story than anything relevant to fantasy baseball. He never had power, is losing speed and isn’t making as much contact as he used to. It’ll be fun to watch for the first couple of weeks but he’ll go back to being a bench player by May. Leave him off your team this season.

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