Chicago Cubs only had a small sample of Ichiro Suzuki’s greatness

The Seattle Mariners said goodbye to one their greats as Ichiro Suzuki walked away from the game in the city he began. The Chicago Cubs only got a small sample of Ichiro and just how good he was.

For starters, in Japan, Ichiro Suzuki recorded 1,278 hits and 3,089 in the Major Leagues. This totals 4,367 total hits. Pete Rose holds the Major League record at 4,256 hits. The matter of who owns the actual record for most hits will be debated between Rose and Ichiro for years to come.

There is no doubt that Ichiro is a first ballot Hall of Famer, and he made an impact on so many people all around the world. Yusei Kikuchi, the Mariners’ new pitching acquisition idolized Ichiro growing up and cried when he walked off the field in Tokyo.

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Kikuchi signed a four-year deal this winter with Seattle, guaranteeing him $56 million. There are club options on the contract that could push it to seven years worth $109 million.

Having played in the American League for all but two seasons of his major league career, Ichiro didn’t face the Chicago Cubs much. A total of just 85 plate appearances against the Cubs, Ichiro had a slash line of .247/.318/.299, and OPS of .616.

The odds are a lot of this came with the Marlins when he was on the tail end of his career. He had just three extra-base hits against the Cubs, two doubles and a triple, driving in only three runs. The Cubs are just one of six teams he did not hit a home run against, all being in the National League, aside from the Astros, who only joined the AL recently.

Ichiro first came to the Majors in 2001. He would lead the league in hits, batting average, steals, and plate appearances. This season would lead to him winning the MVP and Rookie of the Year simultaneously.

Ichiro recorded at least 200 hits for his first ten seasons in the big leagues, leading the league in hits seven of those years, and batting average twice. The highest he hit was .372.

Ichiro played 11-plus seasons with the Mariners, going to the Yankees around the 2012 trade deadline. He spent two years with the Yankees, and three with Miami before returning to Seattle to finish out his career playing these Japanese games.

Ichiro is a baseball legend all over the world whose legacy will be remembered forever. Cub fans should be grateful they got to see a legend play for all these years, even if it wasn’t their team. It doesn’t matter with Ichiro, because he is one of the most likable players of all time. Enjoy retirement, Mr. Suzuki.