Ichiro Hitting 4,000 (From a Non Baseball Fan Perspective)
“I hope he arouses the fire that’s dormant in the innermost recesses of my soul.”
If I told you that quote was from Jean Claude Van Damme in his next tournament style movie where he fights his way out of an illegal prison in Thailand, you’d probably believe me, and you’d probably want to see that movie. I definitely would. But wildly enough this is a real life quote, stated by a real person, pertaining to a pretty regular situation. This is a quote from Ichiro in 2007 in preface to facing fellow countryman and new MLB sensation Daisuke (Dice-K) Matsuzaka, who had been signed to the Red Sox that summer. There are many reasons to like Ichiro, but this is my number one reason. As is clear by the title of this article and any article you read of mine, I don’t watch much baseball. If I had to pick a team to cheer for it would be the San Francisco Giants (I’m a 90′s front runner); I was a big fan of Barry Bonds and Alex Rodriguez so I don’t have the best track record with baseball players in general.
But one guy who even the biggest baseball hater can’t really hate on is Ichiro. It seems everything one might complain about baseball is everything he is not. ”Oh baseball is barely a sport; you can be fat and hit homeruns and make a career out of that, look at Prince Fielder.” Ichiro is none of those things. Sure he can hit a few homeruns, but really he’s just a get on base kind of hitter. And it’s pretty obvious he’s not fat. You know what else is great about Ichiro, he’s most obviously not on steroids, or any other PED and yet he still exuded some very comic book super hero like attributes. While everyone else in baseball was trying to be the Hulk, Ichiro settled for being Spiderman. During that summer lull where no sports I liked were on Sportcenter I would still be intrigued to see what kind of acrobatic catch Ichiro had made the night before. It’s too bad the MLB didn’t hitch their wagon to this horse a long time ago. The faces of the MLB over the past 2 decades have been some pretty poor choices and all around have left the sport with an image problem.
Obviously his production has come down, and obviously he’s not the All-Star he used to be, but maybe MLB should retroactively embrace this man as a hero. Let’s think back a bit. Is there any batter’s stance more memorable over the past 50 years. I think everyone can do an impression of the samurai like readiness Ichiro has the plate. And I can’t claim to know the sport that well, but the way he plays, just seems like the way the sport was supposed to be played. He reminds of a Steve Nash type of player. They both kind of hearken back to a time in sports when everyone was good at everything within the sport they played. When well rounded athletes were the norm. Sports in general have become such a practice in specialization; Football players rarely play both sides of the ball, centers in basketball are no longer expected to be able to shoot free throws, and the MLB created a position for a guy who can only swing a bat for the fences now. In an era mired by the use of PEDs and scandals, and the only endorsements going to guys hitting the balls out of the park, Ichiro was the outcast. Maybe Ichiro ending his career in New York is more fitting than one thinks. Maybe Ichiro much like so many who have come through this town lived his life to the soundtrack of Sinatra when he did it his own way. Here’s to Ichiro hitting 4,000. For one day I’ll silence my hate for baseball.
Oh and for those needing more reasons to love this man, please check out some more gems that have come out of his mouth (as sourced by Sports Illustrated):
June 25, 2007: “I’m not excited to go to Cleveland, but we have to. If I ever saw myself saying I’m excited going to Cleveland, I’d punch myself in the face because I’m lying.”
Sept. 17, 2007: On why he ran out of the baseline to escape a potential rundown: ”I hate being touched by other people. I’d rather run away from them.”
Sept. 7, 2009: Explaining to The New York Times his thoughts on the notion that “chicks dig the long ball”: ”Chicks who dig home runs aren’t the ones who appeal to me. I think there’s sexiness in infield hits because they require technique. I’d rather impress the chicks with my technique than with my brute strength. Every now and then, just to show I can do that too, I might flirt a little by hitting one out.”