Enjoy There Will Never Be Another Ichiro Suzuki! Subscribe to Made The Cut for more mlb content! #mlb #baseball #mlbvideos #baseballvideos #baseball Script written and researched by Mac Douglass
Had Ichiro debuted in his early 20s I think not only would he be discussed among the generation greats but would be discussed for the Mt Rushmore of baseball
I fully believe that he would've beaten Rose's record. I dont think the level of play is that much higher than in Japan. Ichiro came in as a good hitter and if he started his career in the MLB he would still be a great hitter and those early Japan stats wouldve stayed relatively similar. Japan played fewer games so any dip in performance would be offset by the increase in games. I think that if you hold fast that Ichiro wouldn't have beaten Rose's record, then you're just a plain old hater. I think its clear that he would have beaten it. If you count both he has and those Japan year numbers wouldn't be too far off from what he would've gotten in the MLB.
The fact that Ohtani would find Ichiro before games and bow to him says all you need to know. This man has earned every bit of respect he's gotten across baseball.
If Ichiro had played his entire career in MLB then he’d be widely considered one of the greatest players of all time, up there with Ruth, Cobb, Mays, Williams, Aaron, etc. And he would have gotten over 4,000 hits and likely would have made a run a Rose’s all time record for hits. I’m from the Seattle area, so I had watched him in person on many occasions, and boy was it a sight to see. I’ve never seen another player in person with the all around baseball talent of Ichiro, he was nothing short of incredible.
@@DieselDog1982 True, if you combine his professional career hits then he’d have 111 more than Pete Rose. Ichiro could literally do everything great, hit for average, steal bases, an exceptional defensive fielder, had a rocket arm, and even though he didn’t display it during games, he could hit the long ball. He was just playing the role he was assigned, as a lead off hitter. During batting practice, he’d routinely put many balls out of the park as a display for the fans, it was so fun to watch in person. I definitely miss having Ichiro around, but I’ll never forget him.
@@TerryT0114 Yeah, he’s undoubtedly an all time great. I was speaking to the fact that because he spent the first quarter or so of his career playing in Japan, he doesn’t get his just due when it comes down to just how great he actually was. For instance, just last year ESPN published their rankings for the top 100 baseball players of all time and they ranked Ichiro at #46. And I personally believe that had Ichiro spent his entire career in MLB then he’d be ranked much closer to the players I mentioned in my original post. Maybe not all the way at the very top of the list with those players, but also not as far back as he was ranked either. Ichiro should be ranked 20-25 spots ahead of where he’s typically ranked in these kinds of lists, like somewhere around #20.
He would not have done well in a home run derby; he almost never hit for power and actually had one less MLB home run than NPB ones (117 to 118) despite the much longer period of time. But yeah, him never being in the World Series is sad.
@@Gemnist98 well there’s actually this theory that he actually could’ve hit for power but chose not to, if you know the RU-vid channel foolish baseball he has a video about it. One point in the video is his bp sessions before games. The clip is from when he was on the marlins (so in his late 30’s early 40’s) where he goes through his multiple batting rounds, and at the beginning of each one, he hit a homer on command. Which I know is just lazy bp throws, but still impressive to do it consistently each round. Second good point is multiple people who played with him and players around the league thought he should compete in the home run derby. One of those people saying that if he competed, he could very likely win, and that person was Barry bonds. And with how great ichiro was at everything, I really think he could’ve won too tbh.
@@Gemnist98 Ichiro didn't hit many home runs on purpose. He kept his approach small to increase contact because he believed it would help his team win more than if he hit for power. Pretty sure he has a quote saying he could hit 40HR a season if he chose to, not much reason to doubt him either.
@@qwuzzy You’re correct; the Ichiro quote is “If I'm allowed to hit .220, I could probably hit 40 (homers), but nobody wants that” Maybe the most credible endorsement is indeed Barry Bonds’, while he was Ichiro’s hitting coach with the Marlins: “He hits more home runs than anyone in batting practice, every day," "I said, 'You know what? You got to stop hitting all of these home runs.' He said, 'Why?' I said, 'Because you're wasting them all in practice. We want you to hit a home run in a game.'" And if he entered the Derby? "I would think he'd win, easy, hands down," Bonds said Ichiro was 42 years old when Bonds said that!
I grew up in the shadows of Yankee Stadium and had the good fortune of watching Mickey Mantle throughout his career, hitting the ball harder and further than any other player, thundering down the line like a Shelby Cobra, and elegantly patrolling a centerfield as big as Central Park. I've seen plenty of great ballplayers since then, but it wasn't until Ichiro that I paused and realized that I was observing a brilliance I'd never seen. Really?, I'd ask myself. Really. Props to Ichiro.
Ichiro is worthy of the greatest respect. He approached baseball like a martial artist. He was relentlessly dedicated to his craft. He worked beyond tirelessly. He was always humble. He was a dedicated team player.
"Ground ball, base hit into right field, heading for third is Terrence Long, the throw by Ichiro A BEAUTIFUL PEG HE GOT HIM! Holy smokes a laser beam strike by Ichiro to third baseman David Bell and Terrence Long is gunned down at third base. What a throw!"
Being from Seattle, I feel so lucky. I was at his first and last games there and a whole bunch in between. Not only is he a first ballot HOFer, he respected the game completely. He always ran things out and always hustled.
Ichiro was the truth, a technician with the bat and a wizard in the field. The fact that he did all of his MLB work in his late 20s and 30s means that American fans didnt see most of his early formative years. Could you imagine had he come up in the mid 90s with Seattle and played with Junior, A-Rod, Edgar and the Unit?
I’m a jays fan, whenever the jays are playing the mariners I always see this guy on base. It got real annoying when jays commentators would talk about him every time he’s on base or batting. Made me realize dude was already on legendary status (this was late 2000s). A true pest on opponent teams, nothing but admirations to this legend.
He was awesome. He threw out the first pitch at Seattle's home opener last year at 49 or 50 years old an it was clocked at 93mph. The dude is still incredible.... One of the best ever.... It's kind of blasphemous in Seattle to not pick Griffey Jr as Seattle's best player in history but for me Ichiro an Jr are neck an neck. Both are in the conversation of greatest ever players. I'm grateful to have saw both play live an saw both do incredible things at games I was at. Both had cannons for arms.
Good vid. I lived in Seattle during Ichiro's time and that 2001 season was mind-boggling. The M's had just lost Griffey, ARod, and Randy Johnson and yet they went historical. Even if Bret Boone was probably juicing. But I digress, if even ONE of those players had stuck around Seattle (and with the addition of Ichiro) I think the Mariners would've not only won the World Series but they would've changed baseball forever.
Randy definitely would have made a huge difference in those playoffs. Griffey I just couldn't trust his health with how his Reds tenure went. ARod I just really don't like. Personal Bias.
Boone was juicing, but so were Clemens and Pettitte for NYY, and they are the only reason Yanks beat Sea in the playoffs. Otherwise, Mariners go to the WS.
I got to see that 2001 M’s Team in Sea Town Vs Tigers My 1st MLB Game on My own as a Grown Man I hadn’t been to an MLB Game in 11 years since I was 10yo Reds @ Dodgers . Next Game was Tigers @ M’s Reds are My Favorite Team and The M’s are My Nexties , My AL Team .
I'm from and still live in Seattle and was 5 in 2001, too young to understand why Ichiro was so special. I do remember that people couldn't stop talking about him. My teachers talked about him. I didn't care about baseball, but I liked Ichiro. He was more than special, he was a phenomena.
I'm a dodger fan but this guy was always my favorite player growing up. Fantastic on defense, arguably the best contact hitter ever, and would haul arse to first base on any kind of contact. My GOAT
I grew up a Giants fan, but always loved watching Ichiro. I saw him hit the inside the park home run during the 2007 all star game. I really wanted him to be a Giant during the 2010-2016 era.
Back in the early 2000s I got to see him come play at minute maid Park one time we got there early enough to see them doing batting practice before the game and I was in awe at how easily he could hit a home run while in batting practice. Yet seemingly never go for a home run during a game. This man was legendary on all parts of the field.
I can remember hearing sports commentators, when Ichiro was going through the process of coming over, saying that they didn't think he was even strong enough to hit MLB pitchers. That his bat wouldn't be quick enough. That he was going to be overpowered.
By now I am already familiar with Ichiro’s accolades but hearing it from someone else still make me shake my head in disbelief at how amazing this dude was. And I’m not even a baseball fan.
Watching Ichiro taking BP was one of the most surreal things out there. To watch him start hitting the balls to one field and basically just walk his hitting from one field to the other and then back sometimes if he took enough BP was just magical. You are correct, there will never be another Ichiro. And yes you cant technically add his Japanese hits into his hit total, I think it is pretty obvious that he was a better hitter than Pete Rose. Thank you for the video and thank you for not leaving out his CANNON of an arm. That Terrance Long gundown at third is by far one of the best ever, 3rd basemen didnt have to move his glove at all to make the tag of the sliding player.
I've been going to games since 1985, seen a lot of great players, and Ichiro is the best I've had the pleasure to witness live. I'll never forget how fast he was running to first.
Ichiro also hold a record of 522 straight victories in Street Fighter at the Club Sega in Shinjuku, only spending a single credit, and and played for 17 straight hours without even blinking once.
Very thorough. The only thing you didn't mention was that Ichiro is the ONLY major leaguer in history to record 10 straight 200 hit seasons, and that he has the ONLY inside the park HR in All Star Game History. And the only player I can think of who wore their first name on their jersey was Vida Blue.
I remember going to a Detroit Tigers game, probably the last year Ichiro was playing for Seattle. He was in his late 30's, and hit a ball to the gap. I was shocked how fast he was stretching a single into a double. I looked over to my fried next to me and we were both thinking the same thing. Seeing that dude run like that at that age always stuck with me.
After leaving a Mariners game I realized Ichiro was in the vehicle behind us lol. Got to see the Kid up close and Ichiro driving behind us that day. I was there for my Cubs but I'll never forget seeing those two legends!!!
The only time I watched Ichiro play in person, he stole home from first on two pitches. This story is a bit long, but I promise it's worth it. It was 2010, I was 12 years old, and I was THRILLED to be in Seattle for the first time. We didn't have much money; my mom was a professor at a small state college who hadn't made tenure yet, so the only "vacations" we took were when the university would send her to speak at conferences and pay for travel expenses. This time, though, we stayed past the point where the university would pay for the hotel, because this conference happened to be about a week before my birthday. So as an early birthday present, we just went wild: eating at a bunch of great restaurants, going to cool museums, etc., but the best part was left as a surprise. She had tickets to a Mariners game. I was giddy. I was screaming, jumping on the bed of the hotel room, so overwhelmed with joy that I was acting like a damn toddler. Not only was it gonna be my first time seeing an MLB game live, but I was gonna see my favorite player: Ichiro Suzuki. I didn't grow much until my growth spurt later that summer, so seeing a small guy absolutely dominate the whole field was incredibly special to me. Furthermore, I knew that my mom didn't give a crap about baseball, so the fact that she had paid for two MLB tickets just for me meant so, so, so much, as well as the fact that she had looked up what position Ichiro played and made absolutely sure we had seats along the right field line. What can I say? It was an Ichiro game. He made a few diving catches that for most fielders would have been the highlight of their season, threw an absolute laser from deep right straight to home to cut a runner off at third, and used his legs to brute force one of the ballsiest doubles I've ever seen on a shallow left field hit. By the 5th inning, my mom got bored and started grading papers, so I had been talking to the guy next to me. He'd noticed I was new to watching baseball live and gave me some tips as to where I should keep my eyes so I didn't miss anything important, and was very sweet in listening to me absolutely gush about Ichiro. The 7th inning rolls around. Ichiro draws a walk with the bases empty. The guy next to me turns and says, "bet you a dollar he steals second." I reply, "no way! I bet he steals THIRD!" The guy laughs and we turn back to the game. Sure enough, first pitch to the next batter and Ichiro is off. Not only does he beat the throw by a mile, but the catcher threw over the 2nd baseman's head, and Ichiro is at third faster than you can blink. The guy next to me goes for his wallet, but then he snorts and points out that Ichiro is taking an absolutely obscene lead off, practically daring the pitcher to pick him off. And at this point, you gotta feel bad for this poor pitcher. He started that inning by walking one of the deadliest runners in baseball, and then after one more pitch he has a runner on third with no outs. He has every right in the world to be a bit nervous. Even from the stands, we could see that the pick off was way off target by the time it was halfway to third. It sailed by the third baseman, and Ichiro didn't even bother sliding into home. The crowd erupted, the energy in the stadium was electric. The guy next to me hands me a 5 dollar bill and says, "you won that bet even more than either of us expected." I used that $5 to help pay for a Mariners cap, and I wore that cap on every hike I went on until it couldn't fit on my head anymore. That's why Ichiro is a legend. Forget the fact that if you count his Japanese career, he has 100 more hits than Pete Rose despite 1,500 fewer plate appearances. Forget the fact that he has the highest single season hit record in MLB history. Forget the fact that since Statcast started tracking home to first time in 2015, he is one of 15 players to have a single season average of under 4 seconds, one of 3 to do so over 30, and one of one to do so over 40. Forget his impossible rookie season. The true magic of Ichiro is that he made smallball so thrilling that even kids could get it. At the height of the steroid era, he could make a crowd go as nuts for a base hit as they did for a home run. He could make people who thought baseball was boring, who could list maybe 5 players off the top of their head, stand up and cheer for a great catch. And he did all that while being one of the most charming, friendly, delightful players the league has ever seen. Sure, he probably would have been more effective if he played a bit more cautiously, if he focused more on drawing walks than on infield base hits. With his eye for balls and strikes, he probably could have averaged a .400 career On-Base %, and with his speed, that would have led to a higher total amount of runs. But then he wouldn't have been so special, so deeply thrilling to watch. He wouldn't be Ichiro.
The fact that Ichiro still got 3,000 BH coming in as a 27yo is still mind boggling to Me . Simply Amazing . Single Season Hits 👑 ichiro All Time Hits 👑 ichiro MLB Hits 👑 Charlie Hustle It’s amazing Ichiro even broke 3,000 Let alone getting well over 4,000 combined .
In Japan, whoever make Best 11(9 + relief + closer) without Ichiro, we all think of them as baseball noobs. He has a lot of skills to annoy his opponents. Hitting, steeling bases,iron defense described as Area 51,a strong arm and mostly he is a clutch. Even if he is becoming older and older, I always listen to what Ichiro do. He is just beautiful.
Still have my Ichiro foam finger. Its crazy how pumped everyone in Seattle would get when he entered the field. Just a deafening, “I-CHI-RO! I-CHI-RO!”
With his skills with the wood, leather, and a damn cannon for an arm…but when you consider his class and sportsmanship…damn right there won’t be another Ichiro!
Ichiro was so fun to watch and the very definition of a "Baseball legend" Funny because I got Ichiro and Bonds at top on my list 🐐 (two extremely different players who approached the game from opposite sides of baseball spectrum)
One thing that is surprising about Ichiro's career. Despite all those amazing numbers, he only appeared in four post-season series. Two in 2001 and two in 2012. He is an amazing player, yet one player does not make a team.
While Ichiro was winning the 2001 AL ROY, an unknown Albert Pujols won NL ROY. It was clear very early on they were both destined for greatness. They carried me to a dominating fantasy baseball championship.
Imagine he debuted when he was like 24 how many hits he’d have. Didn’t make his first appearance till 27 and he still had over 3000 hits . That is truly astonishing to me
We'll never see another Ichiro. But we might have the next closest thing right now in Steven Kwan. Best contact skills the league has seen in years, excellent defense and speed, never k's. If he maintains this success he could truly put up an Ichiro like career in the majors
I think the closest now is Altuve. He was like Ichiro in early days. I thought he might pass Ichiro as a average hitter with speed.But somehow he went for the Power(HR)
I've always been fascinated by Ichiro. My baseball buddies and I have all time teams of players we saw play. Ichiro is my right fielder and hits second. Rickey in left leading off. Griffey Jr hitting third. pretty good outfield
Alot of people talk about being the greatest, but have little clue on how much work, focus, and dedication to said field is needed to be the greatest. Physical gifts do play a big part as well.
One of the interesting thing about Ichiro to me is that growing up with a niche source of information about baseball, Ichiro appeared like Charles Barkley or Shaq of Japanese baseball. Arrogant, fierce, competitive with a big mouth, big attitude and big talent to back up his trash talk, very far away from the "quiet, humble, hardworking" player image. I heard the same about Ohtani too. Big kids playing games is how I summarise it.
Imagine if he played in the American MLB his entire career and didn't have his rookie season at 27, his records would be even more untouchable. His numbers are hard to believe considering they began at age 27, he was a one of a kind talent. 262 hits in a season?!?! Seems like a typo.
There are ten MLB players that played 28,000 games collectively without ever being ejected. Stan Musial and Willie Mays rank 1-2 among this extraordinary array of players; I don’t recall any of the remaining eight except Derek Jeter, but now that he’s been inducted, it can be said all ten are in the MLB Hall of Fame. Suzuki should be among these greats, except he was ejected once in the course of his career. Characteristically-possibly a first in professional sports history-he wrote a letter to the umpire apologizing for his conduct. It will be a travesty If he isn’t a unanimous HOF selection his first year of eligibility.
You failed to mention Ichiro's average with runners in scoring position his rookie season .449.....also established the rookie record for runs scored and total bases. Tied a rookie record for doubles and triples. Was the most difficult player to strike out and the hardest to double up. Led MLB in multi hit games. Established the rookie record for hitting in 28 consecutive games, and tied a record for Rookies for best fielding percentage, .997. Yeah, that's not happening again. 62 home runs, sure, but not this.
People can say what they want for rankings, but all I’m saying is if aliens threaten to blow up earth and we have to beat them in a game of baseball with any all time players, Ichiro is starting on my team
I was born in 1997 and I was raised in Seattle. Nothing else needs to be said to describe how important Ichiro was to me as a kid. He’s the ideal of a sportsman to me. As a kid, if someone brought up pro sports, I would think of Ichiro.
He was so insanely good. I remember back in the 2000s, the Red Sox would pretty much always IBB him when there was a runner in scoring position and first base was open. Because the odds of him getting a single were just so high that it statistically would lower the Mariners run expectancy to have him at first instead of at the plate. Wasn’t true of any other hitter in the MLB with so little power.
I watched ichiro take batting practice at the Oakland Coliseum and it was incredible how hard he hit the ball. It noticeable how much more power he put into liners than other players. He was also bigger than I expected. I was on the field boxes maybe 20ft from him and was pretty solidly built and wiry. Not slender or a slight build at all.
Ichiro was a special player and he still is a special man. My swing is based off of his, and I feel lucky to have been alive when he was playing. It's a pretty bold claim to call Ichiro the greatest Mariner of all time when compared to Randy Johnson, ARod, Edgar Martinez, King Felix, and especially Ken Griffey Jr, but I think there's a good case for him. He is unique to hits on the level that Babe Ruth, Rickey Henderson, and Nolan Ryan were unique to their respective crafts in their times, and I can hardly think of anyone else who can fit that company.
Three minutes of Seattle Seahawks fans rocking a stadium chanting "I-CHI--RO!" "I-CHI-RO!" when the Seahawks asked Ichiro to raise the 12 made me a Seattle sports fan.
you should of mentioned his clutch hit in the 2009 World Baseball Classic final vs South Korea, probably one of the best games I ever watched and I'm Canadian so I had no dog in that fight, and even for me the atmo as intense
I feel so lucky to be from Seattle and growing up watching baseball in the 90’s and 2000’s. Sure, they never won a championship and probably won’t. I don’t care about that. I got to watch Randy Johnson, Ken Griffey Jr, Alex Rodriguez, and Ichiro Suzuki. Not to mention that 2001 116 win season that ended in disappointment. Regardless, my memories of the Seattle mariners, Kingdome and Safeco field games will forever live in my heart.
So Nolan arenado just got his 10th straight gold glove to start his career to tie ichiro, as Impressive as that is not close to the hits at bats etc, awesome vid loved it🤟
Not to be “that guy”, but Vida Blue also had his first name on his jersey. If you don’t know him, he was a lefthanded pitcher who played in the ‘70s and ‘80s, most famous for being a starter for the Oakland A’s teams that won three straight World Series from 1972-74.
