Former Seattle Mariners Star Shows He Still Has Incredible Skillset in Japan
Former Seattle Mariners star Ichiro Suzuki was back in Japan this week and showed that he still has some very serious skill.
The Yakyu Cosmopolitan posted a video of Ichiro taking outfield at the Toyko Dome, delivering a rocket on the fly to home plate.
This was all part of an event where Team Ichiro played against the High School Girls All-Stars. Former New York Yankees star Hideki Matsui played - and homered - as well.
Ichiro's arm was legendary while he was playing in the major leagues, and it is one of the many things that will earn him election to the Baseball Hall of Fame when first eligible in 2025. One of the best pure hitters in baseball history, Ichiro amassed 3,089 hits in his United States career. He was a lifetime .311 hitter who stole 509 career bases. He played in 19 major league seasons after arriving from Japan.
Ichiro won a laundry list of awards including Rookie of the Year (2001) and MVP (2001). He was a two-time batting champion, a 10-time Gold Glover, a 10-time All-Star and a three-time Silver Slugger.
He played parts of 14 seasons with the Mariners, three with the Yankees and three with the Marlins. Remarkably durable throughout his career, he never played less than 136 games in a season until age 44.
On the international circuit, he also helped Team Japan win the World Baseball Classic in 2009, a feat they replicated in 2023.
He has been working with the Mariners organization since retiring.
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