Ichiro: I can't say I won't put on a disguise in dugout 'like Bobby Valentine'

If Ichiro Suzuki is in the Seattle Mariners' dugout during the rest of this season, you may not recognize him.

The 44-year-old future Hall of Famer announced earlier Thursday that he won't play another game this season while transitioning to his new role with the Mariners as special assistant to the chairman. His new job will still allow him to travel with the team and take part in batting practice, though he won't be allowed to sit in the dugout during games.

Related: Ichiro transitions to front-office role with Mariners

But as a baseball lifer who has repeatedly opined about playing until he's 50, it doesn't seem like Ichiro can fathom having to watch games from a luxury suite any time soon. In fact, he's already thinking about disguises.

"I can't say for certain that maybe I won't put on a beard and glasses and be like Bobby Valentine and be in the dugout," Ichiro quipped to reporters, according to Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times.

Ichiro was, of course, referencing the rather infamous incident in which Valentine, then managing the New York Mets, was spotted wearing a rather poor disguise in the dugout minutes after being ejected from a game.

The possibility of disguising himself aside, Ichiro - who insisted that this move does not mark his retirement, noting that "when I start using a cane, that's when I'll know I'm ready to retire" - is happy to still be a part of the Mariners despite the unceremonious ending to his season as a player.

"The past two months have been the happiest I've been," he said, per Greg Johns of MLB.com. "I knew the day would come when I would have to walk away. But the Mariners have given me this opportunity to stay on. Obviously with my teammates and how great they've been and how much they mean to me and how much I want to help is the reason I wanted to stay on and help in any way I can."