"Ichiro may be locked in the biggest struggle of his career, but he will continue to lead off and play every day, manager Eric Wedge said Monday in Cleveland.

"I know it's been a fight for him, but he's tried to handle it as best he can," Wedge said. "We're going to continue to give him opportunities at the top of the lineup as we play this out."

Earlier, when talking about giving Kyle Seager the night off, Wedge had talked about "the balancing act of getting everyone in there." Part of the manager's balancing act is finding playing time for his young outfielders, a challenge that will get harder when Justin Smoak comes off the disabled list. But Wedge said sitting Ichiro to facilitate that is not a temptation.

"No, we're going to run Ichiro through. As long as he's physically able, I think he's earned that," Wedge said. "We'll continue to do a juggling act, and we'll continue to give Ichi some DH days."

Ichiro homered in his first at-bat and went 3 for 5 Monday night, lifting his average to .269."