
Seattle’s Greatest Baseball Player Gets His Due
When the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum announced the eligible players for enshrinement in the Class of 2025, Seattle Mariner fans began booking their flights to Cooperstown, NY. Only one other time did the fan base know for sure one of their own was getting inducted.
That was in 2016 when the man with the sweetest swing in history, Ken Griffey Jr., became the first Mariner cap to grace a plaque in the HOF. Yesterday, the greatest Mariner in history was inducted with 99.7% of the vote (only one writer did not vote for himm). That player is Ichiro Suzuki. Yes, Ichiro is hands down the greatest Mariner to ever wear the jersey.
Ichiro came to Seattle in 2001 after the M's posted $13 million dollars to secure his services from the Orix BlueWave (now the Orix Buffaloes) in the Japanese Pacific League. He was a fourth round draft pick by Orix and made the team at 18 years old. After 7 years in the Japanese League, Ichiro, at 27, made his major league debut at Safeco Field. He became the first Japanese born position player to play in MLB when he took his place in right field, a place he would hold for the next dozen years.
His impact was immediate. That 2001 season saw the Mariner's tie the MLB record for wins in a seaon at 116 behind Ichiro's rookie record 242 hits, .350 batting average, and 56 steals. That season was the first of 10 straight where Ichiro posted 200 or more hits. He became the second player in MLB history (the first was Fred Lynne with Boston in 1976) to win Rookie of the Year and MVP honors in the same season. It was just the beginning.

Ichiro became the most consistent hitter in the game and arguably the greatest hitter of his generation. In 2004 Ichiro would break the all time record for hits in a season (a record that stood for 84 years) with 262. That season he also broke the record for most hits over a four years span, 2001-2004, with 924 (he would later break that record with 930 between 04-07). He also hit .400 against left handed pitchers that season.
In 2005 Ichiro became the first player in history to record 200 hits in each of his first seasons, a feat even the great Tony Gwynn didn't accomplish. Over the course of his first stint with the Mariners, Ichiro would break even more records. He would hold the AL mark for most consecutive steals without being caught (45), the team consecutive games hitting streak (25), and become the first player to hit an inside the park home run in an All-Star Game.
His time in a Mariner uniform would come to an end in 2012 as he would don Yankee pinstripes for two seasons. He became a Miami Marlin in 2015 for three seasons. Ichiro would return to the Mariners in 2018 for the final 2 seasons of his 28 year professional career. When he hung up his cleats, his resume was eye popping.
Ichiro's MLB Statistics
- career .311 batting average
- 3,089 hits
- 509 stolen bases
- 2001 Rookie of the year
- 2001 MVP
- 10x All-Star
- 10 Gold Gloves
- 3 Silver Sluggers
- 2 batting titles
In 2022 he took his place in the Mariner Hall of Fame. In July he will become the first Asian born player to be enshrined in the Baseball Hall of Fame. The Mariners will celebrate their greatest player with a weekend of events in August.
I would suggest getting your tickets sooner than later. Check out the gallery below for a small snapshot of Ichiro's career
Seattle's Ichiro Is Going To The Hall of Fame
Gallery Credit: Gatty Images/Seattle Mariner Facebook/Basbell Hall of Fame Facebook