Report: Raul Ibanez heading back to Mariners for third stint
Who says you can't go back home, not just for a second time but even a third time?
Raul Ibanez, that's who. Ibanez is heading back to Seattle, according to a report Saturday night by NBC Sports' HardBallTalk.com.
In a report originally by FoxSports.com's Ken Rosenthal, the Mariners have signed Ibanez to what WFAN Radio in New York is reporting is a one-year contract. No financial terms have been announced yet. The Mariners have not publicly announced the deal, either.
This will be Ibanez's third stint with Seattle. He was drafted by the Mariners in the 36th round of the 1992 Major League Baseball Amateur Draft and played his first five big league seasons with the M's. He came back for a second stint from 2004 through 2008.
Now 40, Ibanez hit .240 with 19 home runs and 62 RBI in 130 games this past season, as well as hitting three homers in eight playoff games for the New York Yankees. He filed for free agency after the 2012 season.
Ibanez is expected to start in left field for Seattle when the Mariners face right-handed opposing starting pitchers.
