By Janelle Kono
Former Seattle Mariner star Ichiro Suzuki is likely to become the first Asian ballplayer to be elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame. However, the question is not whether he will become a Hall of Famer, but whether he will become the second ever player to be elected unanimously.
Earlier this month the Baseball Writer’s Association of America (BBWAA) announced the selection of Suzuki on the 2025 Hall of fame ballot.
It is incredibly difficult to be voted in on the first year of being on the ballot. In a recent article by MLB which lists every first-time ballot inductee, most years have 1-2 first time ballot players with occasional years having up to three. Being a first-time ballot Hall of Famer is truly reserved for the best of the best. It is only Ichiro’s first year nominated, yet he is expected to be a first-time ballot inductee out of the 28 total players who are on the ballot this year.
Fox 13 Seattle’s Sports Director, Aaron Levine, who has covered Seattle sports since 2007, explained to AsAmNews some of the reasons Ichiro will likely reach this high honor.
“He’s an absolute hitting machine, his ability to cover the outfield…he reminded me of a spider going up a wall sometimes with some of the catches that he made, he was a spark plug to this Mariners team, and part of the team in 2001. When he arrived, they won 116 games which was a major league record at that time. And his longevity in the game as well…and (he) is still part of the Mariners organization on a day-to-day basis.”
Making it onto the Hall of Fame ballot is in itself a feat. Jay Jaffe, author of the influential book The Cooperstown Casebook: Who’s in the Baseball Hall of Fame, Who Should Be In, and Who Should Pack Their Plaques, spoke to AsAmNews about the process of becoming a Hall of Famer.
As Jaffe put it, simply making the Hall of Fame ballot, for many guys, is an honor in itself. To be eligible for the ballot, players must have played at least 10 years in Major League Baseball and must have been retired for five years. The ballot is developed by a 6-member screening committee within the BBWAA, and the ballot is announced and sent out to over 400 credentialed voters. To be a Hall of Fame voter, individuals must have 10 consecutive years of BBWAA membership which, according to Jaffe, is tough to achieve. Voters then choose up to 10 candidates. Anyone with 75% or more votes are inducted the following July, and anyone with less than 5% of votes falls off the ballot the following year.
Over his illustrious career, Ichiro has been recognized repeatedly for his skill both offensively and defensively. He was named rookie of the month for five months his first year in the MLB in addition to being named the American League MVP that year, the only rookie to win that honor.
He made the All-Star team 10 years in a row (2001-2010), won AL Silver Slugger 3 years (2001, 2007, and 2009), and won a Rawlings AL Gold Glove 10 years in a row (2001-2010). He racked up 4,367 hits while playing professional baseball, 3089 in the Major League, and 1,278 while in Japan in the Nippon Professional Baseball league. According to MLB, this is, “the most of any player in baseball history.”
In addition to his success on the field, Jaffe feels that Ichiro’s character plays a big part in why he was beloved by fans and why he will easily make it in the first round.
“I think a player’s character does come into it too, his public persona, no scandals while he played…he was positive. He radiated a certain joy when he played…He was a wonderful ambassador for the sport. He kind of went above and beyond what most players are capable of in that department because he was, you know, the first Japanese position player to really gain a foothold. And there were doubters all over the place, people who didn’t think…his slap hitting style would play in a home run saturated era, but it did and people loved it.”
Not only is Ichiro expected to be a first ballot inductee, many wonder if he may snag the elusive unanimous vote. Only one player in MLB Hall of Fame history has pulled off this feat, Mariano Rivera in 2019. Since Rivera was a reliever, Ichiro would be the first position player to attain this honor.
In Levine’s opinion, the answer is clear. “There’s no question that Ichiro deserves to be a first time Hall of Famer. The only question is if he is going to be just the second unanimous Hall of Famer in baseball history. and I think the answer is a resounding ‘yes.'”
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