Ichiro

by Adam Ulrey

Ichiro Suzuki has taken the Pacific Northwest by storm, having already shown his all around game, not to mention his game winning two-run homer on Friday night to beat the Texas Rangers 9-7. He goes by one name on the back of his number 51 uniform, that being Ichiro. Pele is soccer; LT is football, Shaq and Magic are basketball and now Ichiro is baseball. What his presence has done for international baseball is phenomenal. He has already improved the economy of Seattle as the Japanese are arranging their vacations around the Mariners home schedule just to be able to see Ichiro play. I have seen almost every at bat and he reminds me a lot of Wade Boggs with speed. He fouls pitches off with relative ease. He slaps balls down on the ground and beats them out for infield hits. Yesterday against the Rangers he hit a routine grounder to A-Rod and almost beat it out. The look on A-Rod¡¯s face was like "Are you kidding me?" After that at bat A-Rod played about five feet in from his normal position and still barely threw out Ichiro his next time up. If this kid played in the '80s with all the artificial turf he might have owned the batting crowns instead of Boggs and Gwynn. His speed is incredible out of the box and he can turn a routine single into a double if you don't charge it aggressively.

Outfielders will have to be on their toes against Ichiro or he'll turn their game into a nightmare. As a baseball fan being able to watch this guy is a pure joy, it's like your waiting every time he comes up for something positive to happen. As an outfielder he possesses a gun, so don't attempt to run on his arm; it's a true weapon. He gives the Mariners that catalyst they need and also helped the local economy. The Japanese have sent a TV crew to telecast over 120 of his games on TV and all the Mariners game on radio. At 27 he has already accomplished a ton, with seven batting titles back in his native Japan. I don't know if he can win the title this year, but I also wouldn't put it past him. People who have watched him for years say that he might struggle in April and May until he learns the pitchers and the league, but then look out. He apparently has decided so to forgo the learning curve, having already gone 4-for-6 in one game and had three different games with two or three hits. They call him the "Japanese Sensation." So far I think that's an understatement. If you get a chance to watch him live or on TV, take advantage of it . He brings fun back to a game of millionaire whiners.