Visits: 5
One of the greatest careers in Major League Baseball history reached an emotional conclusion in Tokyo, Japan on Thursday.
Ichiro Suzuki bid farewell in front of his home fans after nearly three decades in the professional game, following a 5-4 win for Seattle Mariners over Oakland Athletics, leaving behind an unrivalled legacy and a series of remarkable records. In a strange turn of events, Ichiro’s first MLB game, in 2001, also saw the Mariners beat the A’s 5-4.
The 45-year-old outfielder effectively ended his playing career in May last year after transitioning to the Mariners front office. He had only re-signed for the team he spent the majority of his MLB career with just two months prior.
Still, one of the game’s true greats was given the send-off he deserved. Ichiro may have gone 0 for 4 in the second game of the season, but he was afforded a rousing reception and sustained ovation when pulled from right field in the bottom of the eighth inning. The entire Seattle roster greeted him outside the dugout with hugs, while Yusei Kikuchi – billed as Japan’s next big star – teared up when it was time to greet his retiring team-mate.
Given all Ichiro has achieved, and the impact he has made on MLB and the wider baseball world, the glowing tributes are hardly surprising.
After spending the first nine seasons of his career in Japan with NBP team Orix Blue Wave, Ichiro made his move to the MLB with the Mariners at 27-years-old. He took the MLB by storm in his first season, leading the league in hits (242) and stolen bases (56) as Seattle claimed a league record 116 wins.
Ichiro would end the season with a hat-trick of individual accolades, becoming the first player in MLB history to win the AL batting title, the AL Rookie of the Year Award and the AL MVP Award in his first season.
That groundbreaking debut season set the benchmark for a 19-year MLB career – 14 in Seattle, two with the New York Yankees and three at Miami Marlins – that would rewrite the baseball history books.
Ichiro was a 10-time All Star who had 3,089 hits (22nd all-time) with a batting average of 0.311. Among his many records, the Japanese star broke an 84-year record by producing 262 hits in a single MLB season. He also holds the record for most consecutive 200-hit seasons (10). Between his hits in the Japanese leagues (1,278) and the MLB, Ichiro holds the record for most hits by a player from the top pro leagues, 111 hits more than Pete Rose.
It wasn’t just his remarkable hitting statistics that have made Ichiro one of the greats, his 10 Golden Glove Awards testament to his supreme abilities as an outfielder. “Ichi’s arm is unbelievable,” Derek Jeter wrote in tribute to Ichiro – his teammate at the Yankees. “You know what I mean if you’ve seen him throw someone out from rightfield.”
Ichiro’s achievements are even more remarkable given the climate that awaited his arrival to Major League Baseball, which was engulfed in its steroid era as sluggers and home run chasers dominated the narrative.
Slender and unorthodox, there were fears Ichiro would get swallowed whole by the juiced-up MLB machine. However, the Japanese star focused on hitting grounders and bloops, relying on his lightning racing horse speed to get on base, while his missile-like arm allowed him to excel in the outfield.
Ichiro broke the mold of what was the norm in the MLB at the turn of the century, but such was his brilliance, he rose above and outshone his contemporaries. There is unlikely to ever be another player in Major League Baseball quite like Ichiro Suzuki.
You must be logged in to post a comment Login