Baseball Section - Ichiro is Retired. What's your favorite memory of him?

Question

Early this morning (US time zones) the Mariners & Athletics played the 2nd game of their 2 game series in Japan. Ichiro played in both games under the provision which allowed each team to carry 28 players for the international series. However it was widely assumed he would not make the 25 man roster when the teams had to trim 3 players upon return to the US for the rest of the season.

That assumption was confirmed this morning (after the game), when Ichiro announced through the team that this would be the end of his professional baseball career (at least as a player).

My favorite thing about Ichiro was his 10 consecutive 200+ hit seasons from 2001-2010, which marks an MLB record which might never be broken. To me this represents the greatest DECADE of sustained high level performance in history at least for a lead off hitter.

So, what's your favorite thing about Ichro's baseball career?

18 gibbs 20 · Accepted Answer

Breaking the single season hits record.  Why and how people found ways to denigrate it when he did it was beyond me.

Mike · Answer

Laughing my *** off when they called him the hit king.

Alan · Answer

Definitely the commercial where they bring out the entire outfield into the infield, and bullpen into the outfield for a defensive shift against Ichiro, but he still finds the gap and hits a triple. After scooting into third, Ichi looks at the camera and says, in his majestic Japanese English: “Gotta hit ‘em where they ain’t.”

David · Answer

He did it without a lot of the chest-thumping that some athletes feel the need to do.

Steve · Answer

The first time he farted on Jason Varitek.

Anonymous · Answer

Ichiro Suzuki's infield hits record.

Anonymous · Answer

I loved it when Seattle kicked him up to the front office last year. They knew he was washed-up but the guy refused to retire.

Bob · Answer

His breaking the single season hits record.

Alice · Answer

His first game at Fenway Park, fellow countrymen Hideo Nomo vs former Red Sox starter Jamie Moyer.

I sat by the jumbotron and remember distinctly how frenzied the crowd got whenever his face came up during the batting order. There were Japanese flags and Mariner jerseys everywhere, my first and only experience at Fenway where the visiting team outnumbered the home crowd (at least in my section).

Anonymous · Answer

I was at Safeco on Friday, September 18, 2009 when Ichiro hit a game-winning walk-off homer off Mariano Rivera to beat the hated Yankees.  The game had been boring and Ichiro looked confused on the first pitch from Rivera, the dreaded "cutter" pitch.  So Rivera threw another cutter and Ichiro deposited the ball in the right field bleachers.  The game went from big YAWN to Mariners WIN and Yankees LOSE.

Baseball Section - Ichiro is Retired. What's your favorite memory of him?

11 Answers