Ichiro Suzuki made history with the Miami Marlins in Major League Baseball action on Sunday as he brought up his 3,000th hit with a triple in his side’s10-7 win over the Colorado Rockies. The Marlins made a good bet on Ichiro, and we’re all reaping the benefits. And even after his 15th season, a year ago with the Marlins at the age of 41, it still seemed hard to believe that Ichiro would get to 3,000. “And today I’m saying goodbye to both”.
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My Dad has always been an Ichiro fan. An uncharitable reading of his career might present him as a stat-chaser more interested in gaudy sums than in playing his best baseball. This is something that’s huge. “It took a longer time than I thought it should have”. “He works his butt off day in and day out”. So, for me, it’s fitting that hit comes as part of a team win. Ichiro, not known for his power, just missed hitting it out of the park. “It is another historic achievement in his great career”. He appeared to become a little emotional when he was told fans at Safeco Field in Seattle stuck around after the Mariners game ended to watch him get 3,000.
Greeted with cheers every time he came to bat, Suzuki struck out in the first inning, hit a comebacker in the third and grounded out to short in the fourth. But he had a rocky road to the hit milestone.
Starting the season, Ichiro needed only 65 hits to reach the 3,000 plateau, but has been a fourth outfielder and pinch-hitter most of the season.
Diamondbacks 9, Brewers 3 – At Phoenix: Jake Lamb and Phil Gosselin each hit two-run homers during a five-run fifth inning to help Arizona beat Milwaukee. Out of all active players for their career, he is second to only Alex Rodriguez in hits, has the most stolen bases, and is second in average behind Miguel Cabrera.
But Ichiro didn’t burst up the first-base line, obviously thinking his shot had sufficient distance.
Ichiro is the 30 player to achieve 3,000 and the first to do it at Coors Field.
Former teammate and five-time World Series champion Derek Jeter, a 13-time All-Star who retired from Major League Baseball after the 2014 season, described Ichiro as one the game’s all-time greats.
That celebration marked the end of a weeks-long chase that dragged on longer than most expected.
Aug 7, 2016; Denver, CO, USA; Miami Marlins right fielder Ichiro Suzuki (51) reacts following his t … Only Cap Anson, who was 45 when he got his 3,000th hit in 1897, was older.
“Congratulations to my friend and teammate Ichiro on joining the 3,000-hit club, ” Derek Jeter said in a statement released by the Yankees. Despite this being his 16th season in Major League Baseball, he is still evolving as a player. Before Ichiro, only Pete Rose did that.
Still, the 24-year-old is in a mini-slump, having lost two games in a row for the first time since his rookie year of 2013.
Ichiro had 1,278 hits for the Orix BlueWave in Japan’s Nippon Pro Baseball, where he began his career before moving to Seattle. Only six players have more in Major League Baseball history.
Combing his time in Japan and the MLB, Ichiro has a total of 4256 hits, the most in professional baseball history.
As newspaper extras breaking the news of Ichiro’s feat were handed out to passersby in Tokyo, his former teammates also celebrated his record.
Kendrys Morales hit a grand slam to lead the Kansas City Royals to a 7-1 win over the Toronto Blue Jays, the Atlanta Braves scored all their runs in the first two innings of a 6-3 win against the St Louis Cardinals, while the Baltimore Orioles hammered the Chicago White Sox 10-2. The way he prepares, the way he plays the game.
No. 1,500 July 29, 2007 in his 1,060th game, a single off Oakland’s Lenny DiNardo. He played in 1,911 of a possible 1,944 contests.
Profoundly revered among Japanese public, Ichiro is a frequent subject of television documentaries, detailing his stoic preparations for games during and off season. Ichiro proved his critics wrong, not only winning the AL rookie of the year, but also bagging that year’s league MVP.
By 2014, the 40-year-old Ichiro had become a semi-regular with the Yankees. Dahl, a left-handed hitter, is batting.370 with a.986 OPS.
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Jesse Chavez (1-0) got the win with 1 1/3 innings in relief. Detroit is 3 1/2 games ahead of the Mariners for the final wild card playoff spot. Weekend at Safeco Field.
