Ichiro deal a shrewd move by everyone

July, 23, 2012

7/23/12

7:35

PM ET

By Jim Bowden | ESPN.com

The Seattle Mariners have finally turned the page and done the right thing for Ichiro Suzuki and themselves by trading him to the New York Yankees in exchange for minor league right-handed pitchers D.J. Mitchell and Danny Farquhar.

The Yankees have been in need of outfield depth since the injury to left fielder Brett Gardner, who had arthroscopic elbow surgery and is now out for the year. The Yankees have been platooning Raul Ibanez and Andruw Jones since he went down and they have done a decent job, but the Bronx Bombers have really been missing Gardner’s speed and range in the outfield as well as his ability to manufacture runs with his wheels and create more fastballs for the other Yankees hitters because he's a threat to steal.

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ABOUT THIS BLOG

Jim Bowden

Bowden, who served as the senior vice president and GM for the Cincinnati Reds and the Washington Nationals, is an analyst for ESPN.com. In 1992, Bowden became the youngest GM in MLB history when the Reds hired him at age 31. The Reds finished in first place twice during his 10 years as GM, and he was named MLB Executive of the Year by Baseball America in 1999. After working for ESPN in 2004, Bowden became the first GM of the Washington Nationals when the franchise relocated from Montreal to Washington, D.C., in 2005, working in that role until the 2009 season. Bowden co-hosts the "Inside Pitch" radio show on Sirius XM satellite radio. Follow on Twitter: @JimBowdenESPNxm.