Kenji Johjima Opts Out Of Contract

12:34pm: According to Mariners GM Jack Zduriencik, there was no buyout. 11:36am: Catcher Kenji Johjima has opted out of the final two years of his contract, according to a press release from the Mariners.  He'll resume his career back in Japan.  The Mariners are freed from the $16MM they'd have owed Johjima over 2010-11, though Larry LaRue of the Tacoma News Tribune says the parties "came to an agreement on a buyout." Johjima originally signed with the Mariners as a free agent; he agreed to a three-year, $16.5MM deal in November of 2005.  His success in '06 and '07 made that entire contract worthwhile, but Johjima's April '08 three-year extension for $24MM was widely panned.