Ichiro Suzuki

Ichiro Suzuki is one of the greatest hitters in baseball history and a member of the 3,000 hits club. At seven years old, Suzuki joined his first baseball team and asked his father to help shape him into a better player. When he was 12, Suzuki dedicated himself to pursuing a professional baseball career. Suzuki played baseball in high school where he was used as a pitcher instead of an outfielder. Suzuki was drafted in the final round of the 1991 Draft. When Suzuki was 18, he made his professional Pacific League debut in 1992, but he spent most of his first two seasons in the farm system. Suzuki signed with the Seattle Mariners in November 2000. With his move to the United States, Suzuki became the first Japanese position player to play for MLB. In 2003, Suzuki became the third player to begin his career with three 200-hit seasons. He was a ten-time MLB All-Star, three-time Silver Slugger Award winner and ten-time Rawlings Gold Glove Award winner.