Results same as always for Ichiro, but happiness in clubhouse is a plus this season

ST. LOUIS — When this season began, Ichiro was on the disabled list with a bleeding ulcer, a condition that kept him sidelined for the first eight games of the Mariners' season.

"At that point, of all the players in baseball, I was probably the furthest from the All-Stars," he said Monday.

But since rejoining the Mariners' lineup, Ichiro has been the same dynamic offensive force as always, hitting .362 to earn his ninth straight All-Star appearance.

The same, and yet different. This is the year that the joy returned for Ichiro, after a season in which he was embroiled in controversy.

More accurately, the controversy swirled around him, emanating from others, as talk emerged of dissatisfaction with Ichiro within the Mariners' clubhouse.

That seems like a distant memory, however. The team is winning, the clubhouse has been harmonious, and players appear to have made peace with whatever issues they might have had.

Manager Don Wakamatsu, who is in St. Louis as an American League coach, said that resolving the Ichiro situation was his No. 1 priority when he was hired.

"Really, the lesson I tried to learn over the years, being around different managers, I know how paramount it is to establish trust with the veterans," he said. "That's Ken Griffey Jr., that's Mike Sweeney, that's Ichiro, that's Jarrod Washburn, that's Erik Bedard — the main characters of that club.

"If they don't respect me, or like me, or think I'm the guy for the job, I have an uphill battle. Obviously, his happiness was at the top of the list."

Asked Monday what has led to the team's turnaround from 101-loss disaster to first-half contender, Ichiro mentioned new teammates Griffey, Sweeney and Russ Branyan, who "bring a good atmosphere to the team."

He mentioned how winning helps cure all ills.

"Good things come about just from that," Ichiro said, speaking through interpreter Ken Barron. "We see the influences of that as well this season."

But Ichiro's most effusive words were reserved for Wakamatsu, whom he called "the number-one field commander, our manager. He has been huge. He's very calm, coolheaded, and he prevents the players from panicking. He also has the ability to evaluate things, in an outside-looking-in way. That has been huge for us as well."

Wakamatsu knew he didn't just need to win over Ichiro; he had to win the other players over toward accepting Ichiro, and getting over the resentment and friction that existed last year.

"The biggest thing for us was to try to point everyone in his direction," Wakamatsu said. "To say, 'You need to stop pointing the finger that way and say, "This guy stayed healthy, this guy has been on the All-Star team every year, he's had 200 hits every season." You might want to cherish that and learn from it rather than mock it.' "

Meanwhile, Wakamatsu endeavored to understand why Ichiro did some of the unconventional things he does, whether it be in preparation or game strategy.

"I still think it goes back to the fact he trusts me, and what we've been able to do relationship-wise to build from the start," Wakamatsu said. "There are certain issues, I brought him in, and he said, 'Every manager has brought me in on that.'

"Some of it's old hat. Other things you see in the course of the day you know have changed. He's smiling more, he's laughing. But you can't argue with the year he's having. He's done an awful lot. There was animosity with the club on certain things he does, but it was just as much my part to educate them on why he does that, and it's not in a selfish manner. He plays and prepares as well as anybody."

As an example of discovering a method behind Ichiro's madness, Wakamatsu noted that in Japanese baseball, it's not taboo to bunt or steal bases when the team is down by 12 runs, as it is here. When Ichiro would do that, players would grumble that he was merely padding his stats.

"If he wants to get on base and help our club, that's not a selfish act," Wakamatsu said. "But that is more of a cultural thing than him trying to add to a base-hit total. In the past, I think a lot of people viewed it that way. But the bottom line is, he's sacrificed in situations I haven't even given him the bunt sign, just because of our belief he's going to get a hit. That's another side maybe the players don't understand, either."

But they're learning, and Ichiro is being appreciated again — by everyone — as one of the Mariners' main assets.

Larry Stone: 206-464-3146 or lstone@seattletimes.com