SEATTLE — For Ichiro Suzuki, whose baseball career defied convention and shattered records, his induction into the Hall of Fame has long felt less like a crowning achievement and more like an inevitable conclusion to one of the sport’s most remarkable journeys.
Indeed, Suzuki is officially headed to Cooperstown.
Suzuki’s election in his first year on the ballot, which saw him fall one vote shy of being the first position player to receive a unanimous vote, further solidifies his place among baseball’s all-time greats. Suzuki received 99.7 percent of the votes cast by eligible members of the Baseball Writers’ Association of America.
The only player of the 278 Hall of Fame players to be voted in unanimously is longtime Yankees closer Mariano Rivera. Suzuki joined Mariners legend Ken Griffey Jr. and Yanks icon Derek Jeter (who also had 99.7 percent of the vote), both former teammates, in falling just short despite widespread acclaim of being among their era’s best players.
From the moment that he stepped onto a big league ball field in 2001, Suzuki was unlike anything the sport had ever seen – a man who played like a matador but with the precision of a surgeon, a hitter who turned slap singles into a work of art and infield grounders into extra-base knocks with his trademark speed. His bat control, honed through years of relentless training in Japan, was so precise that it bordered on mysticism.
Suzuki’s arrival in Seattle in 2001 is a moment that remains seared into the memories of Mariners fans. His rookie season was among the most epic for a first-year player, when he became the second player after Fred Lynn (1975 Red Sox) to win American League MVP and Rookie of the Year Awards in the same season after he hit .350, led the Majors in hits and flashed his defensive brilliance in the outfield.
That year set the tone for an era of dominance, and Suzuki’s consistency and excellence became the hallmark of his career. The Mariners announced Tuesday night that they will officially retire his No. 51 on Aug. 9 this season.
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