must come to an end eventually.Smart teams see their star players starting to slow down and begin to plan for the future. They either sign a young free agent or draft a kid out of college and start to groom him to become the number one guy at a certain position.Teams that are run by not so smart peopl

Now that he’s no longer an active player Hakeem Butler Jersey , maybe Ichiro Suzuki wants to start swinging for the fences.

How about at next month’s Home Run Derby during All-Star festivities in Washington?

What began as light-hearted banter among Seattle Mariners coaches grew into something that caused a stir in the clubhouse before Wednesday night’s game against the New York Yankees.

”He’s got power and he’s been launching balls into the seats,” Mariners manager Scott Servais said. ”A couple of coaches said the other day, `You know, no one wants to do this Home Run Derby. Why don’t we just send Ichiro? He’d be awesome.”’

The idea gained momentum when Servais mentioned it on a radio show Wednesday, and suddenly a new Twitter hashtag was born – (hash)IchiForDC.

Not officially retired but unlikely to appear in another major league game, the Japanese-born Suzuki shifted to a new role with Seattle as special assistant to the chairman in early May after batting .205 in 15 games this season. The 44-year-old travels with the team and is in uniform for games Chris Lindstrom Jersey , helping out with batting practice and other drills while keeping a locker in the clubhouse.

Even though he’s still in game shape, Suzuki didn’t seem to be entertaining the idea of throwing his hat in the ring for the annual power contest.

”I’m not a player (anymore) and just the long, great history that MLB has, I don’t think it would be good for it,” Suzuki said through a translator. ”But I think it’s fun and I’m happy that it’s come up.”

Servais was happy the concept was being discussed, even if it was nothing more than a joke.

”This is really good because he’s been giving me a hard time so I’m really glad to throw this back in his lap http://www.lionsauthorizedshops.com/authentic-jahlani-tavai-jersey ,” he said with a grin.

Suzuki, the 2001 AL MVP and Rookie of the Year, found humor in the situation – but promised revenge on Servais.

”It’s the funniest thing he’s said this first half of the year,” Suzuki said. ”I’m definitely going to get him back. I’m going to continue to get him.”

Suzuki has 3,089 big league hits, but only 117 of those were home runs. Despite reaching double-digit homers in just three of his 18 major league seasons Kyler Murray Jersey , Suzuki often displayed surprising power in batting practice and it was widely believed he could have clubbed a lot more over the fence if he tried.

But the 10-time All-Star maintained his unorthodox, slashing swing throughout his career, leading the league in hits seven times.

”Right now I’m eating two hamburgers at lunch, and now that this Home Run Derby thing came up I’ll have to up it to three cheeseburgers for lunch, get some more power,” he quipped.

If Suzuki did try his hand against some of the game’s top sluggers in the nation’s capital http://www.arizonacardinalsteamonline.com/byron-murphy-jersey , however, he knows who he’d want pitching to him.

”Mark Buehrle,” he said, after a long, contemplative pause.

Suzuki was 27 for 66 (.409) against the left-hander, who won 214 games over 16 seasons.

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It always amazes us when pro athletes just keep on playing into an age where most players have already called it a career. Some players have it in their genes to keep on going Andy Isabella Jersey , and it takes them a lot longer to lose a step or two. But all good things must come to an end eventually.Smart teams see their star players starting to slow down and begin to plan for the future. They either sign a young free agent or draft a kid out of college and start to groom him to become the number one guy at a certain position.Teams that are run by not so smart people will just ride the wave of their aging star for as long as they can and don’t plan for the future. Having nobody waiting in the wings to take over can be deadly for a team, and when this happens you can count on the General Manager not sticking around too long.Today we will take a look at some of the aging stars who are currently in the NFL with careers that are beginning to wind down. In most cases, they have someone waiting behind them to take over, but in some cases, it’s a complete guess as to who might be next in line. Some of it is speculation based on depth charts and some of it is fact because the teams have not hidden their future plans. Get ready for a fun read either way!