While Ichiro wore a Yankees uniform during part of his career, it’s important to remember that he also played for the Seattle Mariners and Miami Marlins over the course of nearly two decades. And it was throughout that entire journey, across all three cities, that he had one unwavering source of support: his most meaningful teammate.

Ichiro played in a total of 2,653 MLB games—most of them with the Mariners (1,861). He logged 432 games with the Marlins and 360 with the Yankees. No matter the team or the city, his teammate was always right there with him.

Who was the teammate that supported Ichiro the most?

It wasn’t a fellow player. As Ichiro revealed, the person who stood by him through every challenge was his wife, Yumiko. In one of the most heartfelt moments of his speech, Ichiro described the role she played behind the scenes in keeping his life grounded and focused.

“…All of her energy was focused on supporting and encouraging me. For 19 seasons in Seattle, New York and Miami, she made sure that our home was always happy and positive. I tried to be consistent as a player. But she’s the most consistent teammate I’ve ever had.”

Facing Harsh Criticism from the Start

Ichiro didn’t shy away from addressing the adversity he faced when first arriving in the United States. Before honoring his wife’s support, he reflected on the intense criticism and doubt he encountered early in his MLB career—largely centered around his physique.

“If you consistently do the little things, there is no limit to what you can achieve,” Ichiro said. “Look at me, I’m 5’11” and 170 pounds. When I came to America, many people said I was too skinny to compete with bigger Major Leaguers. The first time I ran out on the field, I was in awe of the competition. But I knew if I stuck to my beliefs about preparation, I could overcome the doubts. Even my own.”

“But it was more than just that,” he continued. “There was criticism and negativity. Someone even said to me, ‘Don’t embarrass the nation.’ The person who supported me the most was my wife, Yumiko.”

During an emotional press conference, Ichiro, visibly moved, received the news of his number’s retirement. The announcement coincided with the confirmation of his induction into the Hall of Fame, where he garnered an impressive 99.7% of the vote, becoming the first Japanese player to achieve this top honor.

“For nearly a quarter of a century, Ichiro has been an integral part of the Seattle Mariners organization,” said the Mariners Chairman. “Today’s announcement ensures that his number will be proudly displayed at T-Mobile Park forever, as he aptly joins Ken and Edgar as Mariners in the Hall of Fame.”

When will Ichiro Suzuki’s No. 51 be officially retired?

The retirement of Ichiro’s number 51 will take place on August 9 at T-Mobile Park, during a special weekend dedicated to his legacy. With this distinction, Ichiro joins Ken Griffey Jr., Edgar Martinez, and Jackie Robinson as the only players whose numbers have been retired by the Mariners.

Ichiro: An exceptional MLB career

Ichiro Suzuki left an indelible mark on baseball, both in Japan and in the United States. With 10 All-Star selections, 10 Gold Gloves, and 3 Silver Sluggers, he demonstrated his excellence in all aspects of the game. In 2001, he had a historic season, winning the AL MVP and Rookie of the Year awards, as well as setting the single-season hit record with 262.

Throughout his career, Ichiro accumulated 3,089 hits in the Major Leagues, adding to the 1,278 he achieved in Japan to reach a total of 4,367, the highest figure in professional baseball history. His impact transcends statistics, as he opened the doors to a new generation of Japanese players in the MLB, showcasing their talent and ability to compete at the highest level.

Japanese baseball seems like a never-ending source of talent, and everybody’s looking to land the next Shohei Ohtani. While that may be a lot to ask and most likely an impossible task, there’s no shortage of options overseas.

Ohtani continues to make history every time he sets foot on the plate or steps on the mound. That’s why today, we’re going to talk about him and the three Japanese players with the most career home runs in MLB.

MLB Records: Japanese Players With The Most Career Home Runs

3. Ichiro Suzuki – 117 HR

Ichiro Suzuki had a legendary career. He amassed 3,089 hits over nearly two decades in MLB, becoming one of the most prolific hitters and base-runners to ever live. However, he ‘just’ hit 117 dingers in9,934 career at-bats, an average of 6.1 per season.

Suzuki put together one of the greatest résumés for a foreign player, including a .311 batting average and a whopping509 stolen bases. He also owns an MLB record with 262 hits in a single season.

2. Shohei Ohtani – 118 HR

Shohei Ohtani might as well be the most spectacular player in baseball history. A modern-day Babe Ruth, Ohtani continues to rakebaseballs while also striking out 10+ every time he sets foot on the mound.

To put it in context, Ohtani’s 118th home run in Major League Baseball came in his1,799th at-bat. He had 46 home runs last season alone and is well on pace to be the all-time leader in this regard once it’s all said and done.

1. Hideki Matsui – 175

Long before Ohtani set the bar for what teams wanted their Asian stars to look like, people compared Asian hitters with Hideki Matsui. Even though his MLB career only lasted nine years, he still managed to make a huge impact in the U.S.

‘Godzilla’ was a feared slugger during his prime with the New York Yankees. He left MLB with a .282 batting average and 175 career home runs in4,442 plate appearances. If that wasn’t enough, he uplifted his team in the 2009 World Series to clinch MVP honors.

All these recordswere achievedafter Major League Baseball (MLB) was foundedin 1903 whenthe first World Series was heldbetween the winners of the American and National Leagues. With that said, we present the 25 MLB records that are impossible to be broken.

25. Bob Shaw: 5 Balks In One Game

Balks are one of the most uncommon things you’ll see on a baseball game. As a matter of fact, there have been only around 150 balks per season since 2000, consideringthat a full season has 2,430 games.

However, Bob Shaw once managed to do the unthinkable. He balked five timeswhen he was pitching for the Braves in a game vsthe Chicago Cubs in 1963. Most people don’t even know exactly what a balk is anymore,givenhow much the rules have changed.

24. Connie Mack: 3,948 Losses As Manager

Ownerships, investors groups, executives, and fans just don’t seem to have the slightest patience when it comes to losing. If the team isn’t winning, you better start trading players, signing stars, firing managers, or doing whatever you need to do to turn the franchise around.

So, that’s why no manager is ever going to come close to Connie Mack’s infamous record of 3,948 career losses as a manager. To put this number into context, the second on that list is John McGraw with 1,948 losses. Still, he does hold the record for most wins (3,731) as well, but that’s something that happens when you managefor 49 straight seasons.

23. Hack Wilson: 191 RBIs In One Season

Hack Wilson was the ultimate slugger during his prime. He held the record for most home runs in one season (56) in the National League, a milestone that stood for over 68 years. However, that wasn’t even his mostimpressive stat.

Notably, he only led the league in RBI’s twice in his career despite being a terrific hitter, but his 191 RBIs in 1930 isgoing to keep him in the history books for a longtime.

22. Barry Bonds: 73 Home Runs In One Season

Most people are reluctant to give any credit to Barry Bonds because of the controversies that often surrounded him. Obviously, die-hard fans don’t take steroid use lightly and for good reason, as players were basically cheating in the sport.

However, steroids or not, Bond’s 73 home runs in one season are still official and won’t be taken out of the record books unless someone tops them.

21. Sammy Sosa: 3 Seasons Of 60+ Home Runs

Obviously, all the great things Sammy Sosa did during his MLB career have an asterisk next to it due to the reasons we all know by now. But still, Sosa dominated among those sluggers who weren’t up to no good.

Sosa led the league in home runs twice, but his most impressive milestone has to be the 3 times he sent over 60 balls outside of the park (66 in 1998, 63 in 1999 and 64 in 2001). MLB could never prove Sosa was on PED’s, but he was found guilty of using corked bats during one of the biggest slumps of his career.

20. Joe Sewell: 115 Games Without A Strikeout

Sewell was a master at making contact. If you thought Ichiro Suzuki or Jose Altuve were hitting machines, well Joe Sewell was the first among this type of batters, as he still holds the lowest strikeout ratio in MLB history.

Joe struck out every 62.5 at-bats, and he once went 115 straight games without striking out. He struck out just 114 times throughout his 14-year career.

19. Ichiro Suzuki: 262 hitsIn A Single Season

Since his arrival to the MLB in 2001, the Japanese outfielder has set numerous records, among them getting 262 single-season hits in 2004. He broke George Sisler’s previous record of 257, which he achieved in 1920.

Ichiro also got more than 200 hits for 10 consecutive seasons, something no other player has been able to do in MLB history.

18.Barry Bonds: 2,558 Walks

During his 22-year career, Bonds broke several records that still stand today. Opposing pitchers were terrified of him and his ability to make contact. Additionally, he is the only player in MLB history to win seven MVP awards.

Although the previously mentioned records are already unlikely to be broken, the one that probably no one will even get close to is his 2,558 walks in his career, 688 of which were intentional.

17.Ed Reulbach: 2 Shutouts In TheSame Day

Ed Reulbach’s best season came in 1908 when he won 24 games in the National League and the World Series with the Chicago Cubs, which would be the team’s last championship until 2016. That season, he also did something that we will probably never see in the current era.

On September 26th, the Cubs played a doubleheader against the Brooklyn Dodgers. Reulbach was not just the opening pitcher for both games, he would become the first player in MLB history to throw two shutouts on the same day. Something no other player has even gotten close to achieving.

16.Orel Hershiser: 59 Innings Without Conceding A Run

Hershiser played 18 MLB seasons for five different teams, but 1988 would be his best season while playing for the Los Angeles Dodgers. That season, he would achieve a historic record of 59 innings without conceding a run.

Along with that, he would win that season’s National League MVP and was named the World Series MVP after winning the championship with the Dodgers. He also won the National League Cy Young award and the Gold Glove.

15.Rickey Henderson: 1,406 Stolen Bases

Henderson holds two hitting records, but his stolen bases stand out the most in his career. He stole a total of 1,406 bases, the most in MLB history and far ahead of the previous holder, Lou Brock, who stole 938.

His best season came in 1982 when he stole 130 bases. That would be the second-highest number recorded in a single season behind Hugh Nicol’s 138in 1887. If that was not enough, Henderson also holds the record for most runs scored with 2,295.

14. Tris Speaker: 792 Career Doubles

Without a doubt, Speaker was one of the greatest batters of all time. Tristram Speaker managed to get 792 doubles in his 22-yearcareer, during which he played for the Boston Red Sox, Cleveland Indians, Washington Senators, and Philadelphia Athletics.

The only player who has ever come close to reaching his record was Pete Rose, who got 746 doubles in his 24-year career.

13. Sam Crawford: 309 Career Triples

Although he retired in 1917, he still holds the record for most career triples with 309. In his 19-year career, he played four of them for the Cincinnati Reds and 15 for the Detroit Tigers, where he became a legend.

Additionally, he has 12 inside-the-parkhome runs and was the first player to lead the American and National League in home runs.

12.Joe DiMaggio: 56 Consecutive Games with a hit

His streak started on May 15th, 1941, in a game against the Chicago White Sox, which would last until July 17th in Cleveland. In that run, he would go 56 straight games with at least one hit, surpassing George Sisler’s 41 and Willie Keeler’s 44 consecutive games.

In the years since, the only player who has come close to breaking that record was Pete Rose, who went 44 straight games with a hit in 1978.

11. Hank Aaron: 6,856 Total Bases

Hank Aaron was one of the most dominant batters in MLBhistory. In fact, he held the record for more career home runs (755) for 33 years until Barry Bonds broke that record. Still, he’s the all-time leader in total bases with 6,856; something unlikely to be matched.

If that wasn’t enough, Aaron also holds the record for the most RBIs (2,297), extra-base hits (1,477), and most straight seasons with 150+ hits (17).

10. Cal Ripken Jr.: 2,632 Consecutive Games Played

He was one of the best and most respected players of his era. He played his entire career with the Baltimore Orioles and would take part in 19 All-Star games, but his biggest achievement was breaking the record for most consecutive games played.

Ripken Jr. achieved that historic record by playing in every game from May 30th, 1982 to September 19th, 1998. He did not miss a single game for 17 seasons and would go on to play a total of 2,632 consecutive games, surpassing the previous record set by Lou Gehrig with 2,130 games played.

9.Ty Cobb: .366 Batting Average

The first Hall of Fame inductee at a certainpoint held90 individual records. Since retiring in 1928, many of thoserecords have been broken, but one of them still stands and is virtually impossibleto break.

During his 23-year career, he hada batting average of .366, something he achieved by surpassing .300 for 22 straight seasons.

8. Nolan Ryan: 5,714 Strikeouts

Considered one of the greatest pitchers of all time, “The Express” was well known for his polarizing fastball. In his 27-year MLB career, he would go down as the pitcher with the most strikeouts with 5,714. The only player who comes close to this record is Randy Johnson with 4,875.

If that wasn’t enough, Ryan also holds the record for most No-Hitters, achieving a total of seven throughout his career. The second player with the most No-Hitters is Sandy Koufax with four.

7.Walter Johnson: 110 Shutouts

The historic Washington Senators pitcher, considered by many the greatest right-handed pitcher of all time, played in the Majors for 21 seasons. In that time, he set a record that is almost impossible for any currentplayer to break: 110 shutout games.

Johnson was one of the first five players to be inducted in the Hall of Fame. Those five players were known as”The Immortals” and include greats such as Ty Cobb, Christy Mathewson, Babe Ruth y Honus Wagner.

6.Pete Rose: 4,256 Career Hits

In 1985, Roseentered the MLB record books by surpassing Ty Cobb’s previous record of 4,192 career hits and going on to get a total of 4,256 career hits. They are the only players in history to get more than 4,000 hits.

In addition to the hitting record, Pete Rose led the league in hits for seven seasons, which was one shy of Cobb’s record. Six of those seasons were withthe Cincinnati Reds,and one for the Philadelphia Phillies. He also had a brief stint with the Montreal Expos.

5.Fernando Tatis: TwoGrand Slams InOneInning

Thereis a point of debate whether this is a record or just anachievement. Regardless, we wanted to include this on our list as it is one of the most remarkable things we have seen in baseball.

It occurred on Abril 23rd, 1999 in a game between the St. Louis Cardinals and Los Angeles Dodgers. Playing at the time for the Cardinals, Tatis made history by becoming the first player to hit two GrandSlams in the same inning. Both home runs came off the same pitchers, Chan Ho Park. Those eight runs he scored also set another recordfor the most RBIs in a single inning.

4. Cy Young: 749 Complete Games

There’s a reason why the Cy Young award is called that way. Cy Young was one of the most dominant pitchers in the history of this beautiful sport, but his most impressive feature was his durability.

Young loved to go the distance every time he was out there, often completing games regardless of the outcome. With the way pitchers take care of their bodies right now, no one’s going to come close to his 749 complete games.

3. Charles Radbourn: 59 Wins

Charles ‘Old Hoss’ Radbourn was one of the most dominant pitchers in baseball’s early days. Obviously, he didn’t face the kind of professional opposition most dart-throwers have to deal with nowadays, but his stats are still quite impressive.

As a matter of fact, Radbourn had 59 wins and 13 losses in 1884. Needless to say, no pitcher is going to pitch 72 games in one season.

2. Johnny Vander Meer’s Two Straight No-Hitters

Johnny Vander Meer enjoyed quite a successful 14-year career in the MLB. He made it to 4 All-Star Games, led the National League in strikeouts three times, and even won 1 World Series with the Cincinnati Reds.

However, none of that comes close to his most significant milestone: throwing two straight No-Hitters, which is something people don’t talk enough about nowadays.

1.Cy Young: 511 Career Wins

There have been many great pitchers over the years, but no one has ever come close to reaching Cy Young’s career win total of 511. He remarkably managed to win an average of 23 games a season during his 22-year career.

There is a reason why the award given to the best pitcher each season is named after him. He also holds the records for most innings pitched (7,356). All records that are impossible to break in today’s game as all teams limit their pitchers’ workload.