Ichiro sends $1.23M for disaster relief

Seattle Mariners outfielder Ichiro Suzuki will donate $1.23 million to the Japanese Red Cross to help with earthquake relief efforts, Japan's Kyodo News reported Friday.

Ichiro has so far chosen not to speak about the crisis that has struck his country over the past week, as the Mariners prepare for the MLB season at spring training in Peoria, Ariz.

The donation was announced to the news agency by Ichiro's management company BowPlanning.

This is not the first time the 10-time All-Star has contributed his riches in the wake of natural disasters in his homeland. He donated more than $120,000 last month to Miyazaki Prefecture in the wake of several volcanic eruptions.

The 37-year-old, who played for nearly a decade in Japan before moving to the US, also gave $123,000 to aid earthquake relief efforts after a temblor struck the city of Kobe in 1995.

Ichiro's donation is believed to be one of the biggest by an individual and follows a $1 million gift from Hollywood actress Sandra Bullock.

The Mariners star's announcement came on the day Japan paused for minute's silence, exactly a week after a 9.0-magnitude earthquake and tsunami unleashed devastation along its northeastern Pacific coast.

The death toll from the twin disasters stands at 6,911, with a further 10,316 people unaccounted for.