My first and exact sentiments. Talk about a Major Screwing of the Pooch, i.e., Himself! What a fkng waste. Damn good thing he wasn't offered what he wanted in NY.
I wondered back then, if he was being greedy (and he was, self-centered in a bad way), or if he was missing a few marbles, for turning his back on exactly what you spelled out, thinking he'd never amount to much at all in bumfk Seattle, where few become superstars in Safeco. The Kingdome it is Not!
Only one player worth a shit in Seattle's Safeco, may very well only be Ichiro, who would of excelled on an Iceberg or the Sahara, if there were a baseball field there.