Ichiro Suzuki (2025)

Seattle Mariners

In November, 2000, Ichiro signed a three-year, $14 million contract with the Seattle Mariners. With that contract, he became the first Japanese position player in US major league baseball.

In 2001, his first season with the Mariners, Ichiro batted .350, with 242 hits, 34 doubles, and 56 stolen bases. He had career highs in doubles and stolen bases and he led the AL in hits and stolen bases. He won the AL Rookie of the Year award and the AL MVP award that year. In the 2001 postseason, he had 16 hits in 38 at-bats in 10 games.

Ichiro had a career high number of walks in 2002 with 68 to 62 strikeouts. He finished the season with 208 hits, 27 doubles, 31 stolen bases and a .321 batting average in 157 games. Defensively, as an outfielder, he made 333 putouts and 3 errors and he had a fielding percentage of .991.

Ichiro finished the 2003 season with 212 hits, 29 doubles, 34 stolen bases, 69 strikeouts to 36 walks, and a .312 batting average in 259 games. Defensively, he made 337 putouts and 2 errors with a .994 fielding percentage in 159 games.

Ichiro had one of his strongest seasons in 2004, when he batted a career high .372 and he led the AL with a career high 262 hits. He also had 24 doubles, and an on-base percentage of .414. He stole 36 bases that season. Defensively, he made 372 putouts and 3 errors.

In 2005, Ichiro led the AL in games played with 162. He had 206 hits, 21 doubles, 68 RBIs, 66 strikeouts to 48 walks, and a .303 batting average. Defensively, he made 381 putouts and 2 errors and had a fielding percentage of .995.

Ichiro led the AL in hits in 2006 with 224. He finished the season with 20 doubles, 45 stolen bases, and a .322 batting average in 161 games. Defensively, he made 364 putouts and 3 errors playing in 121 games in right field and 39 games in center field.

Ichiro again led the AL in hits in 2007. He had 238 hits, 22 doubles, 37 stolen bases, and a .351 batting average in 161 games. Defensively, he played 155 games in center field and he led AL center fielders in putouts (424) and fielding percentage (.998).

In 2008, Ichiro once more led the AL in hits, this time with 213. He finished the season with 20 doubles, 43 stolen bases, 65 strikeouts to 51 walks, and a .310 batting average. Defensively, he played 91 games in right field and 69 games in center field and he made 370 putouts and 5 errors.

Ichiro continued to lead the AL in hits in 2009, finishing with 225 hits and a .352 batting average in 146 games. He moved back to right field and made 317 putouts and 4 errors in 145 games.

In 2010, Ichiro led the AL in games played and hits. He finished the season with 214 hits, 30 doubles, 42 stolen bases, and a .315 batting average in 162 games. Defensively, he led all AL right fielders in putouts with 354.

Ichiro again led the AL in games played in 2011 with 161. However, he struggled offensively, batting just .272 with 184 hits, 22 doubles, and 40 stolen bases. His defensive numbers also fell with 263 putouts as a right fielder in 151 games.

New York Yankees

During the 2012 season, Ichiro requested a trade from the Mariners and they obliged by trading him at the end of July to the New York Yankees. He finished the 2012 season with 178 hits, 28 doubles, 55 RBIs, and a .283 batting average in 95 games with the Mariners and 67 games with the Yankees. In the postseason, he had 11 hits in 40 at-bats in 9 games.

In 2013, Ichiro batted .262 with 136 hits, 15 doubles, and 20 stolen bases in 150 games. He finished the 2014 season with 102 hits, 15 stolen bases, and a .284 batting average. Defensively, as an outfielder, he had a .994 fielding percentage.

Miami Marlins

Suzuki signed a one-year, $2 million contract with the Miami Marlins on January 23, 2015. He finished the 2015 season with his poorest season. He had 91 hits and a .229 batting average in 153 games. Defensively, he played 30 games in left field, 7 games in center field, and 73 games in right field.

After the 2015 season ended, the Marlins gave Ichiro a one-year, $2 million contract for 2016. The contract included a 2017 club option. He had a better year in 2016, finishing the season with a .291 batting average, 95 hits, and 15 doubles. He hit his 3,000 MLB career hit on August 7, 2016.

The Marlins exercised Ichiro's option for 2017 after the 2016 season ended and they added an additional option year to his contract. In 2017, he batted .255 in 136 games. He had a career low 50 hits. Defensively, he played 9 games in left field, 10 games in center field, and 16 games in right field.

Return to Seattle Mariners

Ichiro elected free agency on November 3, 2017. He signed again with his first team, the Mariners, on March 7, 2018. He was released on May 3rd, after playing in 15 games. The Mariners made him a special adviser to the team that same day.

Ichiro signed a minor league contract with the Mariners on January 22, 2019. He announced his retirement as a major league player on March 21, 2019.

Ichiro was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2025. He received 99.7% of the votes on the first ballot.

Awards and MLB Records

• AL Rookie of the Year
• AL MVP
• All Star Game MVP
• AL Batting Title - 2 times
• Gold Glove - 10 times
• Silver Slugger award - 3 times
• Led AL in hits - 7 times
• Led AL in singles - 10 times
• Led AL in games played - 4 times

Career Statistics

Career statistics for Ichiro include:

• 10 seasons with a batting average over .300, with a high of .372 in 2004
• 12 seasons with over 150 hits and 10 of those seasons with over 200 hits, with a high of 262 in 2004
• 13 seasons with 20 or more stolen bases, with a high of 56 in 2001

Career batting statistics for Ichiro include:

• 2,651 games played
• 3,089 hits
• 362 doubles
• 780 RBIs
• 509 stolen bases
• 1,079 strikeouts to 646 walks
• .311 batting average

Career fielding statistics for Ichiro as a right fielder include:

• 1,968 games played
• 4,002 putouts
• 35 errors
• .992 fielding percentage