Free agent Matsui says he might like to join his pal Ichiro in Seattle next year.Yankee DH Hideki Matsui is now a free agent. And despite the fact that he was just named MVP of the World Series, there’s a better than even chance that the Bronx Bombers will decline to pursue the services of the soon-to-be-36-year-old Japanese slugger. How is this relevant to the Mariners? Well, during a postgame interview last night, Matsui was very specific in terms of where he wanted to play if his Yankee career is indeed over: Seattle, to team up with his friend and countryman Ichiro Suzuki.Since Matsui’s proclomation, the airwaves (KJR and 710 in particular) have been abuzz at the prospect of Matsui donning Mariner blue. Granted, signing a guy whose knees no longer allow him to break into more than a brisk jog when rounding the bases might strike a competitive yet rebuilding team’s GM as counterintuitive. But considering the M’s DH tandem last year consisted of the relatively unproductive, washed-up duo of Ken Griffey Jr. and Mike Sweeney, and considering Matsui’s bat, if not his knees, is still in its prime, might Jackie Z take Ichiro’s good bud up on his offer? Only if the price is fairly modest, I think; and you just know a team-on-the-brink like Texas or Detroit is likely to throw a fairly immodest price at Matsui. But if his heart and head are already here, the M’s might have a puncher’s chance.