COOPERSTOWN, N.Y. Throughout his 19-year Major League Baseball career, Ichiro Suzuki was renowned for his painstaking preparation.
For the Hall of Fame induction of him? Not at all.
Suggested Videos
On the eve of his enshrinement on Saturday, Suzuki remarked via an interpreter, “Of course, I’m nervous and probably should be preparing more, but this morning I actually went to the field, long tossed and kind of ran and did my workout, so I guess that for me that was more important.”
Suzuki narrowly missed earning the second unanimous pick and is the first Japanese player to be inducted into the Hall of Fame. Relief pitcher Billy Wagner and six-time All-Star CC Sabathia, the 2007 AL Cy Young Award winner, will join him on Sunday. Dick Allen and Dave Parker will get posthumous honors. They were.
Since Suzuki’s entrance in 2001, Japan has had a significant influence on MLB. Yakyu/Baseball: The Transpacific Exchange of the Game, an exhibit at the Hall that honors the connections between Japanese and American baseball, opened Thursday concurrently with his induction. Along with Suzuki, current two-way standout Shohei Otani and pitcher Hideo Nomoi are also honored.
Despite their close ties, Suzuki does not want Japanese baseball to imitate Major League Baseball.
Japan shouldn’t imitate MLB, in my opinion. I believe MLB should be the way it is, and Japanese baseball should be Japanese baseball and the way they do things. “I believe they ought to be distinct and not interchangeable,” he stated.
Suzuki was chosen by the Baseball Writers Association of America with 393 out of 394 votes, or 99.7%. Wagner and Sabathia received 325 (82.5%) and 342 (86.8%) votes, respectively, 29 more than the 296 required for the necessary 75%.
Suzuki was an All-Star and Gold Glove outfielder ten times and a two-time AL batting champion.311 with Miami, the New York Yankees, and Seattle, with 117 home runs, 780 RBIs, and 509 stolen bases.
With 1,278 hits in Nippon Professional Baseball and 3,089 in Major League Baseball, including a season-high 262 in 2004, he is arguably the greatest contact hitter of all time. Pete Rose’s MLB record of 4,256 is surpassed by his total of 4,367.
During his career, Suzuki made seven trips to the Hall, but this time is unique.
I had a goal. I would visit and examine some of the antiquities in the basement. However, this time, I didn’t come with the intention of seeing anything. All I wanted to do was go to Cooperstown and see everything. That’s what’s different this time.
I would come here (during the season) to sort of purify myself and feel wonderful once more, he said.
Because he will be wearing a Yankees cap with the interlocking NY on his plaque, Sabathia views his induction as a full circle event.
Sabathia, a native of Vallejo, California, believed he wanted to be near home, but after meeting with general manager Brian Cashman in his house and acting as though the Yankees hadn’t made him an offer on the first day of free agency, his wife convinced him to join with the Bronx Bombers.
It was my wife who said, “You’re trying to figure out all these contracts and do all these different things.” You must go to their desired location. You just discuss your desire to win, to be a winner, and other such things. Why don’t you visit New York? Every year, they strive to win that one spot. According to Sabathia, it seemed as though she was born a Yankee.
And I believe that I tried to avoid that for a long time since my father would constantly remind me that I would play for the Yankees. He wasn’t there to tell me it was okay if I failed because he died when I was 23. I believe I was afraid of failing there. However, it turned out to be the best choice I’ve ever made. For a long time, I avoided making that choice. I believe I was destined to play with the pinstripes, but I first intended to play on the opposite coast.
Suzuki and Sabathia’s induction is particularly noteworthy because they were colleagues for more than two seasons.
We have the feeling of being teammates. Ichi and I were both rookies, of course. It’s wonderful to be able to join him and Billy in the Hall of Fame, Sabathia said, adding that he always stole my Rookie of the Year honor (in 2001).
During his 19 seasons with Cleveland, Milwaukee, and the Yankees, Sabathia recorded 251-161 with a 3.74 ERA and 3,093 strikeouts, ranking third among left-handers behind Steve Carlton and Randy Johnson.
Wagner made it on his tenth and last attempt, but Sabathia and Suzuki were elected on their first ballot appearance.
After witnessing how difficult it is to get in here and how many men, including Lee Smith, Ted Simmons, and others, had to wait their time to get to this point and go through the veterans committee, Wagner stated, “It’s well worth the wait.”
After Hoyt Wilhelm, Rollie Fingers, Dennis Eckersley, Bruce Sutter, Goose Gossage, Trevor Hoffman, Lee Smith, and Mariano Rivera, Wagner, a seven-time All-Star, became the seventh pitcher in the Hall of Fame to be predominantly a reliever. The only left-hander is Wagner.
Other honorees on Saturday included former Washington Post sports writer and columnist Tom Boswell, who was given the BBWAA Career Excellence Award, and veteran Cleveland Guardians broadcaster Tom Hamilton, who was given the Ford C. Frick Award for broadcasting.
___
AP MLB:
