Baseball legend Ichiro Suzuki retires

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Part Multi 313

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https://www.cbsnews.com/news/ichiro-suzuki-retirement-mlb-baseball-seattle-mariners-japan/

Baseball legend Ichiro Suzuki retires
BY BRIAN PASCUS

UPDATED ON: MARCH 21, 2019 / 3:22 PM / CBS NEWS

A baseball legend has bowed out. Ichiro Suzuki, the famed Japanese outfielder who played most of his MLB career for the Seattle Mariners, announced his retirement Thursday night, shortly after Seattle's 5-4 win over the Oakland Athletics. Suzuki, 45, played his final game Thursday at the Tokyo Dome, where he began his Hall of Fame-bound professional baseball career 27 years ago as a member of the Orix BlueWave for Nippon Professional Baseball in Japan.

"I have achieved so many of my dreams in baseball," Ichiro said in a statement released by the team, CBS Sports reports. "I am honored to end my big league career where it started, with Seattle, and think it is fitting that my last games as a professional were played in my home country of Japan."

He added, "I want to thank not only the Mariners, but the Yankees and Marlins, for the opportunity to play in MLB, and I want to thank the fans in both the U.S. and Japan for all the support they have always given me."

Suzuki is a living legend, considered one of the greatest baseball players to ever don a uniform — a 10-time All Star in the majors, a 10-time Gold Glove winner, and a 3-time Silver Slugger. He won the 2001 American League Rookie of the Year and American League Most Valuable Player awards. Suzuki had 3,089 hits over his MLB career, and is the world leader in professional baseball hits, as his 4,367 combined hits in Nippon Professional Baseball and Major League Baseball exceed Pete Rose's 4,256 career hits in the MLB.

Suzuki's 19-year MLB career included 12 seasons with the Mariners, three seasons as a New York Yankee, and three seasons with the Miami Marlins. All told, he played 2,651 games, where he dazzled fans with his famous pre-game stretching routine, his cannon of a throwing arm, and his uncanny ability to get on base.

First published on March 21, 2019 / 2:27 PM

Copyright © 2019 CBS Interactive Inc. All rights reserved.
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I remember Suzuki. He started around the time I quit watching baseball. His career hit count is more than Pete Rose's when you add his non-MLB career.
 
Part Multi 313 said:
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/ichiro-suzuki-retirement-mlb-baseball-seattle-mariners-japan/



I remember Suzuki. He started around the time I quit watching baseball. His career hit count is more than Pete Rose's when you add his non-MLB career.
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No it isn’t. Pete Rose played three years of professional baseball in the minor leagues, which is very much comparable to Japanese professional baseball. Rose’s hits total as a professional at all levels is 4683. So Rose is still the hit king.

Thats a dumbass comparison as Rose has over 1,000 more hits than Ichiro in the MLB and the MLB is far harder to get hits than any other league in the world. So I call a seriously bogus comparison.
 
jimmymccready said:
You are wrong, Hoople. In the National professional major leagues in the world, Ichiro is the hits leader.
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There's also a NCAA Division III national champion. Do you think they could come close to competing with Clemson, Alabama, or any other top team in Division I?
 
jimmymccready said:
You are wrong, Hoople. In the National professional major leagues in the world, Ichiro is the hits leader.
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I don’t care. They are wrong. Japanese professional Baseball isn’t even Triple AAA minor league level. I watched both men play and Ichiro was a hell of a ball player but he wasn’t in Rose’s league as a hitter.
 
CFM said:
There's also a NCAA Division III national champion. Do you think they could come close to competing with Clemson, Alabama, or any other top team in Division I?
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I know. I mean Ichiro was a great ball player but he was no Pete Rose. That notion is laughable.
 
Mott the Hoople said:
I know. I mean Ichiro was a great ball player but he was no Pete Rose. That notion is laughable.
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To claim the Japanese leagues are comparable to the Major Leagues in the U.S. is laughable. There's a reason why the NCAA divides football into divisions.

That doesn't take anything away from Ichiro. However, he's the exception not the rule for the typical Japanese professional player.
 
CFM said:
To claim the Japanese leagues are comparable to the Major Leagues in the U.S. is laughable. There's a reason why the NCAA divides football into divisions.

That doesn't take anything away from Ichiro. However, he's the exception not the rule for the typical Japanese professional player.
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Not to mention the difference in pitching. Japanese pitching, and I have watched it on TV, is better than Div 1 college and is right around minor league level A to AA. Not even close to major league pitching.

The whole thing is just arbitrary to take a dig at Pete. If you want to compare apples to apples then compare who had the most hits in professional baseball...it's Pete. Who has more hits in MLB the toughest baseball league in the world, again its Pete by a long shot, over 1,000 hits. I think even Ichiro would roll his eyes at the comparison.
 
jimmymccready said:
Nope, Hoople, "I don't care" by you is not an answer or conclusive.
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IT's less arbitrary then just citing some organization no one has ever heard of making a silly assed claim. If they wanted to be objective they would have said "The most hits in professional baseball". Otherwise they are putting Major League Japanese or Major League Korean or Major League Italian Baseball on the same par as Major League Baseball in North America and that is just absolutely laughable.

Pete Rose is the hit king. To argue otherwise is just plain silly.
 
Mott the Hoople said:
No it isn’t. Pete Rose played three years of professional baseball in the minor leagues, which is very much comparable to Japanese professional baseball. Rose’s hits total as a professional at all levels is 4683. So Rose is still the hit king.

Thats a dumbass comparison as Rose has over 1,000 more hits than Ichiro in the MLB and the MLB is far harder to get hits than any other league in the world. So I call a seriously bogus comparison.
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Wow. You just can't help being stupid.

It's a good look for you.
 
Mott the Hoople said:
No it isn’t. Pete Rose played three years of professional baseball in the minor leagues, which is very much comparable to Japanese professional baseball. Rose’s hits total as a professional at all levels is 4683. So Rose is still the hit king.

Thats a dumbass comparison as Rose has over 1,000 more hits than Ichiro in the MLB and the MLB is far harder to get hits than any other league in the world. So I call a seriously bogus comparison.
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I was quoting the article.
 
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