Miami Marlins Ichiro Continues Climbing Hits Ladder
Major League Baseball’s record holder for single season hits is closing in on membership in one of the game’s most exclusive clubs, as Miami Marlins outfielder Ichiro Suzuki is climbing the all time hits list.
Miami Marlins 42-year old outfielder Ichiro Suzuki is not an everyday player any longer, but don’t tell that to his bat. In two starts this past weekend due to Christian Yelich being sidelined by back spasms, the former MVP collected six hits in eight at-bats against the Washington Nationals, bringing his career total to 2,956.
Suzuki already holds the MLB record for hits in a single season with 262, a feat he accomplished in 2004 that broke the mark of 257 that George Sisler had held since 1920. He is now No. 32 on the all-time career hits list, just 44 shy of reaching the vaunted total of 3,000.
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There are just two players standing between Suzuki and becoming the 30th player in big league history to join the 3,000 hit club. Sam Crawford (2,961) and Sam Rice (2,987) are the next two names he will pass.
Making his debut in the United States at the age of 27, Suzuki won the American League MVP and Rookie of the Year awards in 2001, and has amassed two batting titles, three Silver Sluggers, 10 Gold Gloves, and 10 all-star selections. Prior to joining the Seattle Mariners, he had already accumulated 1,278 hits in nine seasons in Japan.
Taken together, Suzuki’s Japanese and MLB stats add up to 4,234. Pete Rose, the all-time hits leader in the big leagues, had 4,256, meaning that if Ichiro reaches 3,000, he will also pass Rose’s overall career mark along the way.
The one thing standing in the way for Suzuki to reach the milestone in 2016 may be playing time. After appearing in 153 games and fading badly in the second half a season ago, new Marlins skipper Don Mattingly has used him sparingly. Suzuki has 21 hits in a mere 55 at-bats through the team’s first 43 games.
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Yelich has dealt with back issues in the past, spending time on the disabled list in both 2014 and 2015 because of it. Miami has listed the 24-year old as day-to-day. Yelich is putting together his best big league season in 2016, slashing .320/.420/.524 through 41 games. His performance, along with that of Marcell Ozuna, is the chief reason Suzuki has seen the field so sparingly as the Marlins’ fourth outfielder.