Often referred to by his fans as the Michael Jordan of Japanese baseball, Ichiro Suzuki is undoubtedly one of the greatest Japanese players to have played the game. Beyond his legendary baseball status, Ichiro Suzuki is widely regarded as a national institution in his native Japan. He played in Japan for the first nine years, then moved intercontinental to America’s MLB team Seattle Mariners in 2001. This career-defining move made the left-fielder the first Japanese non-pitcher to be signed by a United States team.
Since 2001, Ichiro has remained a pacesetter and has set several records in his long professional career. Ichiro Suzuki, a.k.a. Hitting Machine, experienced his hottest period in 2004 when he broke the 84-year-old record for the most goals scored in a single season and ended the year with a record 262. The historic match in which this new record was set was described by Suzuki as the best moment of his career and also earned him a wild following.
Ichiro Suzuki Bio, Age
Ichiro Suzuki was born on October 22, 1973, in Kasugai, Aichi, as the son of Yoshie and Nobuyuki Suzuki. However, he grew up in the city of Toyoyama (Aichi) together with his only sister Kazuyasu Suzuki, a sister named Kazuyasu Suzuki. His father, Nobuyuki Suzuki, was a high school baseball player in his prime and was therefore determined to give his son an early start in the sport. His father started teaching him at the age of three.
Ichiro received his high school education at Aikodai Meiden High School, a school known for its prestigious baseball program. The young man was initially recruited as a pitcher for the school’s baseball program, which marked the beginning of one of the most famous individual sports careers in Japanese history. By the end of his high school career, Ichiro had achieved impressive statistics with a cumulative batting average of 0.505 and 19 home runs.
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Ichiro Suzuki was drafted into the draft of Japanese professional baseball Nippon by Orix BlueWave in November 1991. His 9 years with the team were filled with some of the most prestigious awards in Japanese baseball, including 7 All-Star Features, 3 Most Valuable Player (MVP) Awards, 7 Golden Glove Awards, and an unprecedented 3 Japan Professional Sports Grand Awards.
Ichiro Suzuki joined the Seattle Mariners of Major League Baseball in 2001, where he spent most (12 years) of his MLB career. In July 2012, the talented player moved to the New York Yankees, where he played two and a half seasons and then signed with the Miami Marlins. Ichiro Suzuki returned to his first MLB team, the Mariners, in 2018 after three seasons with the Mariners.
Ichiro Suzuki currently holds the MLB record for the highest number of goals scored in a season (262), the highest number of 200 consecutive seasons (10), and also the most goals scored by a player of Japanese origin. As an intercontinental star, Ichiro also holds the record for the most goals scored by a single player in the world’s premier league baseball leagues. He was inducted into the Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame, making him the first MLB player to receive this honor.
Who is Ichiro Suzuki Wife?
Just like his brilliant sports career, Ichiro Suzuki has also had good experiences on the home front. The legendary baseball player is married to his wife of almost 2 decades Yumiko Fukushima, a former sportswoman. The couple entered into the bond of marriage on December 3, 1999, in Santa Monica, California. Yumiko Fukushima is also the administrator of her husband’s finances. At the beginning of his career, Ichiro’s finances were managed by his father. However, he handed over this crucial role to his wife after a tax evasion scandal that cost the baseball star thousands of dollars in addition to intense media scrutiny.
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Net Worth
Ichiro Suzuki is one of the few selected players who have conquered more than one top league in their professional career. In addition to his career achievements, the international baseball star also enjoys several juicy sponsorship deals in the United States, his home country Japan and indeed around the world. Ichiro’s net worth is estimated at $180 million.
Height and Other Body Measurements
The baseball superstar stands at a height of 180 cm (5 feet 11 inches) with a bodyweight of 79 kg (175 lbs). By baseball standards, Ichiro is relatively small in stature. But what the Japan-born star lacks in stature, he makes up for with strength and endurance.
