Needing a true lead-off hitter, Seattle took a chance on the best position player Japan had to offer, Ichiro Suzuki. In the spring of 1999 the Mariners got a glimce of his greatness. Due to a working agreement with the Orix Blue Wave, Ichiro came over for a few weeks to build relations between the two teams. However, due to an illness while in camp, he was limited to just a few games.

One year short of his free agent year, Ichiro decided it was time for him to test his baseball skills against the best in the world. Since he was still under contract he would have to get approval by the Orix Blue Wave. In the fall of 2000 a blind bid was set up to aquire Ichiro. Each team interested would have to submit an amount and the highest bid would win the right to try and sign him. The Mariners won with an amount of $13 million. Sources say it was the Mariner's Japanese owner, Hiroshi Yamauchi (chairman of Nintendo Ltd.), ordered the team win the bid at all cost. He was also instrumental in bringing the Mariners 2000 rookie-of-the-year winner Kazuhiro Sasaki to Seattle.

On November 18, 2000, the Mariners became the first team to sign a Japanese player. Hopes were high that Seattle had finally found the leadoff hitter that would take them to the next level of success, a World Series birth.