Bobby Abreu

Through 2004, Abreu is a .305 hitter with 166 home runs and 674 RBI in 1167 games. In addition to these records, Ichiro also started in the All-Star Game for the fourth consecutive year, and led all leadoff hitters in batting average, on base percentage, and on-base plus slugging. He also posted the league's tenth best OPS (.971) and eight highest in total bases (312). Ichiro set a number of Major League records during the 2004 season:. Abreu finished the season with a .301 average, 30 home runs and 105 RBI, and ranked among the National League top five in five offensive categories: runs (4th, 118), doubles (4th, 47), stolen bases (3rd, 40), walks (2nd, 127) and on base percentage (5th, .428). Ichiro's career is followed closely in his native Japan, with national television news programs covering each of his at-bats, and with special tour packages arranged for Japanese fans to visit the United States to view his games. Finally, in 2004, he got his first All-Star berth, being voted in as the "32nd man" in online voting on MLB.com. Continuing the custom he began in Japan, he uses his given name on the back of his uniform, instead of his surname, becoming the first player in Major League Baseball to do so since Vida Blue.

In 2001 Abreu reached career highs in home runs (31) and RBI (110), and hit .308 in 2002 and .300 a year later. His success has opened the door for other Japanese players like Yomiuri Giants slugger Hideki Matsui to enter the Major Leagues. His .335 average that season ranked third in the National League and was the highest posted by a Phillies player since outfielder Tony González hit .339 in 1967. Ichiro was also a four-time Gold Glove winner from 2001 through 2004. In 1999 he made a brief run at the batting title. Some sportswriters criticized his official "rookie" status, saying that his years of experience in the Japanese "major leagues" gave him an unfair advantage over other rookie players who had little or no prior major league experience. In his first season with the Phillies, Abreu led his team with a .312 batting average and collected 17 home runs, 74 RBI, and 19 stolen bases in 151 games, with 271 putouts and 17 assists in right field. At season's end, he won the American League Most Valuable Player and the Rookie of the Year awards, becoming only the second player in MLB history (after Fred Lynn) to receive both honors in the same season.

Despite the fact that Astros and Devil Rays both deeming him expendable, Abreu firmly established himself as one of the most promising young hitters and strong-armed rightfielders in the game. Aided by Major League Baseball's decision to allow All-Star voting in Japan, Ichiro was the first rookie to lead all players in voting for the All-Star Game. Left unprotected in the 1997 expansion draft when Houston decided to keep fellow Venezuelan outfielder Richard Hidalgo, Abreu was selected by the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, but minutes later he was traded to the Phillies for shortstop Kevin Stocker. 25-31). He played only 74 games over two seasons. (Whiting, 2004, pp. Abreu started his major league career with the Houston Astros on September 1, 1996. In Seattle, ticket sales (and wins) were higher than ever, fans from Japan were taking $2,000 baseball tours to see the games, more than 150 Japanese reporters and photographers were clamoring for access, and "Ichirolls" were being sold at sushi stands in the ballpark.The flight agencies also benefited from Ichiro, many Ichiro fans were flying in and out of the country just to see him play.

. By mid-season, he had produced hitting streaks of 15 and 23 games, been on the cover of Sports Illustrated, and created a media storm on both sides of the Pacific.
. Not only did he prove he belonged, Ichiro had a remarkable 2001 season, accumulating 242 hits (the most by any player since 1930) and leading the league with a .350 batting average and 56 stolen bases. He bats left-handed and throws right-handed. Up to that point, only pitchers from Japan had been playing in the United States and, in the same way that many Japanese teams had considered the 18-year-old Ichiro too small to draft in 1992, many in the US believed he was too frail to succeed against Major League pitching or endure the longer 162-game season. Bob Kelly Abreu [ah-BRAY-oo] (born March 11, 1974 in Maracay, Aragua State, Venezuela) is a Major League Baseball right fielder who plays for the Philadelphia Phillies. Ichiro's move to the United States was viewed with great interest because he was the first Japanese position player to play regularly for a Major League Baseball team.

Abreu is the first player in Phillies history and the first Venezuelan big leaguer to ever steal 30 bases and hit 30 home runs in one single season. In his nine seasons in Japan, Ichiro was a career .353 batter and, in addition to his hitting achievements, won seven Gold Glove Awards. The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum displays the bat used by Abreu to hit the first home run in the Phillies’ new ballpark, Citizens Bank Park on April 12, 2004. Ichiro signed a three-year, $14 million contract with the Mariners and became the first Japanese-born everyday position player in the Major Leagues. Abreu's longest homer was measured at 517'. After the 2000 season, in which Ichiro posted his highest batting average (.387), a Pacific League record (U.S.-born Randy Bass, former Hanshin Tigers player, holds the highest single-season batting average in Japanese baseball history with .389 in 1986), Seattle won a bidding war among Major League teams for the rights to negotiate with him on a contract. He set records with 24 home runs in a single round and 41 overall, topping Miguel Tejada's previous marks of 15 and 27, set a year earlier. In a move both charitable and practical, Manager Akira Ogi decided to release Ichiro from any obligations to the team and allow him to pursue his dream.

At Comerica Park –a field normally considered a "pitcher's park"–, Abreu won the Home Run Derby. In 2000, Ichiro was still a year away from being eligible for free agency, but the Blue Wave were no longer among Japan's best teams and would probably not be able to afford to keep him. Louis Cardinals Jim Edmonds. Following the 1996 season, playing in an exhibition series against a visiting team of Major League All-Stars kindled Ichiro's desire to travel to the United States to play in the Major Leagues. Abreu was voted a starter of the NL outfield for the All-Star Game, finishing second in fan voting, behind St. By this time, the Japanese press had begun calling him the "Human Batting Machine." The following year, with Ichiro winning his third straight MVP award, the team defeated the Central League champion Yomiuri Giants in the Japan Series. He also became the first player in major league history to hit nine home runs in a 10-game stretch. In addition to his second batting title, he led the league in RBIs with 80, hit 25 home runs, and stole 49 bases.

Abreu also led the NL in slugging average (.792), on-base percentage (.535), walks (30) and was tied for the league lead with 30 RBI. In 1995 Ichiro led the Blue Wave to their first Pacific League pennant in 12 years. In May, Abreu was honored as the Player of the Month in the National League, after hit .396 and 11 home runs. 13-16). Bobby Bonds had seven straight 20/20 seasons (1969-75), while his son Barry had nine in a row (1990-98). (Whiting, 2004, pp. One of three ML players with seven consecutive 20-HR, 20 stolen base seasons. Initially, Ichiro disliked and was embarrassed by the practice, but by the end of the season "Ichiro" was a household word and he was being flooded with endorsement offers.

.929 career OPS [18th among active players, 39th on the all-time list] (1996-2004). Suzuki was the second most common surname in Japan, and his manager introduced the idea as a publicity stunt to help create a new image for what had been a relatively weak team, as well as a way to distinguish their rising star. .517 career slugging average [25th between active players, 62nd on the all-time list] (1996-2004). It was during the 1994 season that he became known as "Ichiro". .412 career on base percentage [6th among active players, 30th on all-time list] (1996-2004). He also hit 13 home runs and had 29 stolen bases, helping him to earn his first of three straight Pacific League Most Valuable Player awards. 210 career stolen bases [ranks him 25th among active players] (1996-2004). He responded by setting a Japanese single-season record with 210 hits in 130 games for a then-Pacific League record .385 batting average and won the first of a record seven consecutive batting titles.

Rested only in 12 games in four consecutive seasons (2001-04). In 1994 he benefited from the arrival of a new manager who put him in the leadoff spot for the Blue Wave and allowed him to hit any way he wanted. Led league in games played (162, 2001). "pendulum batting style" due to the pendulum-like motion of the leg, shifting the weight forward as he swung the bat), was considered to go against conventional baseball wisdom, which insisted that the weight must remain on the rear leg in order to hit the ball effectively. 7-time top 10 in walks (1998-2004). The swing, nicknamed 振り子打法 (furiko dahō) (i.e. Twice reached the 30-30 club (2001, 2004). Ichiro made his Pacific League debut in 1992 at the age of 18, but he spent most of his first two seasons with a farm team due to his manager's refusal to accept Ichiro's unorthodox swing.

6-time hit .300 or more in seven regular seasons (1998-2000, 2002-04). 2-12). Led league in power/speed number (34.3, 2004). (Whiting, 2004, pp. Led league in triples (11, 1999). Yet, despite the production of outstanding numbers in high school, Ichiro was not drafted until the fourth and final round of the professional draft in November 1991 because many teams were put off by his small size, 5'9", 120 pounds (54 kg). Led league in doubles (50, 2002). These exercises helped develop his wrists and hips, adding power and endurance to his thin frame.

Silver Slugger Award (2004). Among the strength drills he performed in training there were hurling car tires and hitting wiffleballs with a heavy shovel. Twice All-Star (2004-05). We have to make him spiritually strong." When he was ready to enter high school, Ichiro was selected by a school with a prestigious baseball program, Nagoya's Aikodai Meiden Kōkō, where, unlike as a professional, Ichiro was primarily a pitcher instead of an outfielder, owing to his exceptionally strong arm. When Ichiro joined his junior high school baseball team, his father told the coach, "No matter how good Ichiro is, don't ever praise him. According to Ichiro, "It bordered on hazing and I suffered a lot.".

Nobuyuki claimed, "Baseball was fun for both of us," but Ichiro later said, "It might have been fun for him, but for me it was a lot like "Star of the Giants," a popular Japanese manga series that told of a young boy's difficult road to success as a professional baseball player, partially due to rigorous training demanded by the father). By age 12, he had set professional baseball as his goal and, while he apparently shared his father's vision, he did not enjoy their training sessions. As a Little Leaguer, Ichiro had the word shūchū (集中 — "concentration") written on his glove.
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The two began a daily routine which included:. At age seven, Ichiro joined his first baseball team and asked his father, Nobuyuki Suzuki (鈴木宣之 Suzuki Nobuyuki), to teach him to be a better player. . 2004 was his most impressive (offensive) season yet, as he set several MLB records, including a new all-time, single-season Major League record with 262 hits.

He became the first Japanese-born everyday position player in the Major Leagues. When the Blue Wave granted his release after the 2000 season, Ichiro signed a contract with the Mariners. He moved to the United States in 2001 after playing for seven years for the Orix Blue Wave in Japan's Pacific League.
Ichiro Suzuki (鈴木 一朗, Suzuki Ichirō, イチロー, born October 22, 1973 in Toyoyama, Nishikasugai, Aichi Prefecture, Japan) is the right fielder for the Seattle Mariners Major League Baseball team.

Ichiro's 704 at bats fell one short of Willie Wilson's record of 705. His 225 Singles in 2004 shattered the previous all-era record of 206, set by Wee Willie Keeler in 1898. October 3: Ichiro completed the 2004 season with 262 hits and an MLB-leading .372 batting average. His 257th hit also set the Major League record for most hits over any four-year span, with 919.

Louis Browns in 1920. October 1: Ichiro collected his 258th and 259th hits, breaking the record set by George Sisler with the St. Ichiro bettered the modern (post-1900) record of 198 set by Lloyd Waner of Pittsburgh in 1927. September 17: He broke the major league record with his 199th single of the season in the seventh.

August 28: He became the first player in MLB history to have three 50-hit months in a single season. August 26: With a home run off of Kansas City Royals reliever Jeremy Affeldt, Ichiro became the first player in Major League history to reach 200 hits in each of his first four seasons. hitting 250-300 pitches from a machine. fielding 50 infield balls and 50 outfield balls, and.

hitting 200 pitches from Nobuyuki. throwing 50 pitches.