To look back on Ichiroad

Cover page;
Ichiro Suzuki was inducted into the Mariners Hall of Fame on August 27. Congratulations, Ichiro!
Today's topic is about looking back on Ichiro’s story, Ichiroad. 

Slide 1;
The title of my Web site is KAISPO Baseball Innovation. I named it from his playing style. He is an innovator of baseball. 
First of all, Ichiro was not have a good physique as a major leaguer. He was skinny. But, he triumphed over many critics. 

Born and high school;
Ichiro appeared at Summer Koshien and Spring Koshien when he was a high school player. The two Koshiens are kinds of national tournaments in Japanese high school baseball. If you don't know about the Japanese high school baseball system, you can look at another movie whose title is “what is Japanese high school baseball.”  youtu.be/52HaL-5OA88  
 
NPB;
Ichiro started his professional career with the Orix Blue Wave in NPB in Japan. He was not the No.1 draft pick but the No.4. Katsutoshi Miwada, the scout who recommended getting Ichiro, should be given a Nobel prize. However, unfortunately, Miwada has already passed away. Ichiro Suzuki was the leading hitter for seven consecutive years in the Pacific League, NPB. Ichiro's historical records are too many to tell all here. 

MLB;
Ichiro became the first Japan-born Major Leaguer as a field player with the Seattle Mariners in 2000. Ichiro won many titles and left MLB records, including American League MVP, the Rookie of the Year, leading hitter, Gold Glove, All-star MVP, and so on. Significantly, the 10th straight 200-hit season was one of the most outstanding achievements in MLB. Also, he broke George Sisler's single-season record with 262 hits for the first time in 84 years in 2004. Ichiro's historical records are too many to tell all here as well. 

WBC;
He contributed to two consecutive WBC victories of Japan.
 
Slide 2;
This graph shows the hitting record of Ichiro.
Ichiro played for seven years in NPB, Japan, and 19 years in MLB, America.  
Here, he won the batting champion seven years in a row. Here, he achieved ten consecutive 200-hit seasons. It’s an MLB record. Here, he had the most significant number of hits, 262. It‘s an MLB record. Ichiro got 1,278 hits with a .353(three fifty-three) batting average in NPB, Japan.  Also, he had 3,809 hits, the 24th most in MLB history, with a .311(three-eleven) batting average. Finally, Ichiro had a combined total of 4,367 hits in his professional career in the U.S. and Japan. The number of hits should be the world record. Incredible. 
 
Slide 3;
This movie that I shot is about Ichiro's History. I shot it at Tokyo Dome when Ichiro Suzuki came to Japan for the opening series with the Mariners vs. the Athletics in 2019.
 
First scene;
That is his first career hit in the big league.
 
Second scene;
His throwing like a laser beam had a substantial impact on Major League.
 
Third scene;
Ichiro made a fantastic catch, climbing a fence. Amazing!!
 
Fourth scene;
That is the memorable moment Ichiro hit No.258 to break the single-season hit record of George Sisler. The record may be unbreakable. He shook hands with an 81-year-old daughter of Sisler.
 
Fifth scene;
That is when Ichiro reached home, avoiding a tag like a ninja.
 
Sixth scene;
That is when he recorded his No.3,000 Major League career hit.
I remember that he sat on a bench and seemed to shed tears after the game.
 
Ichiro retired from professional baseball after the 2019 opening series at Tokyo Dome.
Now the legend is a special assistant to the chairman of the Mariners organization. He often teaches young Mariners players while practicing his batting, even now in Seattle. Also, Ichiro sometimes coaches baseball for amateur teams like high school teams in Japan.  (Ichiroad No.473 / KAISPO No.1202)