Raul Ibanez News: Pro Sports Daily

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November 4

Seattle Post-Intelligencer

"New Mariners general manager Jack Zduriencik has been around baseball all his life, so he knows plenty of people in the game. At 35, Raul Ibanez is 22 years younger than Zduriencik, but he, too, is a baseball lifer and seems to know just about everyone. Turns out they didn't know each other -- until they talked for the first time Monday morning on the first day of baseball's general managers' meetings. Ibanez, the Mariners left fielder since 2004, is a free agent. One of the running stories of this offseason will be whether the Mariners can lure their RBI leader back for 2009 and beyond. "It was a complimentary conversation out of respect, which he very well deserves," Zduriencik said of ..."

Steve Kelley After season of work, Raul Ibanez gets little fanfare

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September 29

Seattle Times

columnist Steve Kelley

"One last time this season, Raul Ibanez ran through the Safeco sunlight, stepped on second base and took his place in left field. For 11 big-league years - eight of them in Seattle - Ibanez has played baseball the way it is supposed to be played. He has prepared for every game the way a professional is supposed to prepare. Win or lose - and we all know there have been too many losses - he has been as consistent as a heartbeat. On the finger-pointing-est team in baseball, he has never made excuses and always stayed above the pettiness. In a clubhouse that felt so often like Dysfunction Junction, Ibanez was an island of dignity. On a team that needed leadership, he did what he could, hoping ..."

Winter moves may hit M's hard at plate

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September 25

Seattle Times

"There is one distraction Raul Ibanez has been unable to block out as he puts together one of his finest seasons. Ibanez compares himself to "a racehorse with blinders on" because of the way he can focus on nothing more than the task ahead. It's part of the mental training techniques he picked up from renowned sports psychologist Harvey Dorfman, and explains Ibanez's continued production while everything around him is falling apart. Yet as successful as Ibanez has been at shutting out questions about his pending free agency, the position he'll play in 2009 and the firings of his team's manager and general manager, he has been unable to completely zone out when it comes to the Mariners' ..."

This week could be it for Ibanez as a Mariner

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September 22

Seattle Post-Intelligencer

"The Mariners' final homestand of the season begins Monday. Will it be the final time Raul Ibanez calls Safeco Field home? Logic and baseball history says it probably will be. Ibanez, who will be a free agent this winter, doesn't want to think in such terms. But the Mariners, owners of the worst record in baseball despite a $121 million payroll, almost certainly aren't going to win next year. Ibanez, 36, will probably be signing his last multi-year contract. It will be his final chance to play for a winner. After three consecutive seasons of 100-plus RBIs, he is going to get good money. But the perk of playing for a contender in 2009 is something the Mariners can't offer. "I'm not thinking ..."

Ibanez pushing Ichiro to limit for club batting title

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September 15

Seattle Post-Intelligencer

"Ichiro Suzuki doesn't have a closer friend on the Mariners than Raul Ibanez. Their lockers are adjacent in the Safeco Field clubhouse. Ichiro has taught Ibanez some Japanese. Ibanez has taught Ichiro some Spanish. And as the 2008 season runs into its final two weeks, Ichiro doesn't have a closer competitor on the roster, either. Ichiro has finished each of his first seven seasons as the Mariners' leader in batting average. The discrepancy between Ichiro and whoever was in second was seldom close. This year, however, Ibanez enters the final two weeks with a .312 batting average after going 1-for-5 on Sunday. Ichiro, also 1-for-5 on Sunday, is at .311. And while Ichiro is almost certain to ..."

Mariners' Raul Ibanez showing worth of his bat

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September 7

Seattle Times

"Long after this latest defeat was in the books, Mariners manager Jim Riggleman pulled Raul Ibanez aside for a question. "Can you DH tomorrow?" Riggleman asked. The pair headed toward Riggleman's office to finish the conversation, but it's a question bound to be asked about Ibanez again as the season draws to a close. Ibanez drove in all four runs in his team's 7-4 loss to the New York Yankees on Saturday night to surpass the 100 mark in runs batted in for a third consecutive year. But for each level Ibanez's bat climbs, questions increase about his defense and whether he'd be willing to switch to first base or a designated-hitter role should he remain in Seattle. A pending free agent, ..."

Raul Ibanez, Jarrod Washburn tested on market

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August 14

Seattle Times

"Once again, fans are left to wonder whether this latest night of hitting exploits by Raul Ibanez was his final one in a Mariners uniform. The countdown to Ibanez's potential departure carried right up to the July 31 trade deadline, then resumed Wednesday when it was learned that both he and starting pitcher Jarrod Washburn had been claimed on revocable waivers. Ibanez shrugged off the latest news, then went out a few hours later and produced a solo home run, two doubles, a single and scored the decisive run on a Wladimir Balentien homer in the 12th inning of a 10-7 win over the Los Angeles Angels. Seattle has just over 48 hours to negotiate a trade with any club claiming the two players ..."

Teams put in claims for Ibanez, but he doesn't expect to move

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August 14

Seattle Post-Intelligencer

"Baseball's waiver rules are so complex and the rumors so rampant, sometimes it seems like anything can happen. "I heard the Red Wings put in a claim on me," Mariners outfielder Raul Ibanez said. OK, almost anything. Ibanez won't be strapping on skates, but there's a chance he could be in the uniform of another team by the end of the week. He said he has been told the Mariners put him through waivers and that more than one team claimed him. One report had Tampa Bay, which just lost outfielder Carl Crawford for the season, close to a deal for Ibanez. "I would bet that it's not true," Ibanez said. "That's what I'd bet. I've heard there were claims, but that doesn't mean anything." For one ..."

Mets don't want Ramirez, but Ibanez might fit

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July 28

Newsday

"The Mets don't want Manny Ramirez, and as of now, they don't think they'll be acquiring an outfielder of any kind before Thursday's non-waivers trade deadline. As Newsday reported yesterday, the Mets don't intend to make a run for Ramirez, who is feuding with the Red Sox again, despite general manager Omar Minaya's previous attempts to land the future Hall of Famer. Team officials don't see Ramirez as a fit because of his behavioral issues. Of the remaining outfield possibilities, the Mets appear to have the most interest in Seattle's Raul Ibañez, though Ibañez bats lefthanded and the Mets need a righty hitter. So far, however, the Mariners' asking price has been too high. Minaya is ..."

Raving About Ibanez

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July 28

New York Post

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"Carlos Beltran and Johan Santana raved about Seattle outfielder Raul Ibanez, who the Mets have some interest in. "He's a good player and always every year he finds a way to put up his numbers," said Beltran, who played with Ibanez on the Royals from 2001-03. Beltran also called Ibanez a great guy in the clubhouse and a good friend. Santana, who knows Ibanez from playing against him, called him "definitely a gamer.""

Mets might make a move at trade deadline

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July 21

Newsday

"Manuel has made it no secret he'd like to see general manager Omar Minaya pick up a big bat for the outfield. Matt Holliday, Jason Bay and even Xavier Nady are probably out of the Mets' reach, so he might have to "settle" for Seattle's Raul Ibañez or Cleveland's Casey Blake. Manuel said he is still counting on a return from rightfielder Ryan Church, who is out indefinitely with migraines. Church will be re-evaluated today when the Mets return to New York. But even if Church does play and is able to stay on the field - two things that are not certain - the Mets still need a replacement for Moises Alou, who will have season-ending surgery on his left hamstring tomorrow."

D-Backs trying to pry Ibanez from M's

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July 14

Seattle Post-Intelligencer

"The Arizona Diamondbacks have made preliminary contact with the Mariners hoping they can land Raul Ibanez to fill an opening in left field. However, the Mariners are feeling no urgency to deal, even with the trade deadline two weeks away, and the Diamondbacks are feeling the Mariners' reluctance. A source in the Diamondbacks organization said "they (the Mariners) want too much." The Diamondbacks want to have a left-handed hitter to fill in with Eric Byrnes on the disabled list."

Team talks trade with M's for Ibanez

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July 13

East Valley Tribune

"With an eye toward adding a left-handed bat, the Diamondbacks have had discussions with Seattle about Raul Ibanez, who fits the necessary profile, a left-handed hitter who can play left field. With 2 1/2 weeks remaining until the nonwaiver trade deadline, however, the Mariners' asking price is too steep for the D-Backs, according to a major league source, although the inevitable dance between worth and need is likely to continue. Ibanez earns $5.5 million this year, the second year of a two-year deal, so he would cost the D-Backs roughly $2.5 million as a fill-in for Eric Byrnes. Seattle is believed to want top minor league prospects, and the D-Backs' list starts with second baseman ..."