Ichiro...none ever like him

I remember the comments from many of those in the know around MLB who said there was no way he could play at such a high level. He was a little guy with no power from Japan. They were the experts. Ooops.

infdad,

Nice article, Ichiro is a Stud and more importantly, seems to be a pretty good role model for the kids.

Our family was in Seattle for the same series you attended in August. We attended the game that Sabathia was on the mound, and Jeter went yard. Safeco is a nice ballpark and Seattle is a beautiful city to visit, we had a great time!

Our hotel was directly across the street from a downtown movie theatre. We caught a movie on our last day in the late morning, and saw Jeter & Cano at the threatre. I think my daughter scared Jeter!

http://www.youtube.com/user/RF...w5#p/f/4/wfXRjE9vjYI

Living within the broadcast area for the Mariners, you kind get spoiled watching Ichiro. One day when he leaves/retires we'll wish we had watched him more.
We attended one of the New York games last summer, it was like one of those moments in history seeing Griffey, Ichiro, Jeter, and Rodrigeuz all on the same field. I'm not a big fan of MLB but even I felt somewhat amazed to see them in person playing the game.

quote:

it is hard to find players who are so different that you cannot find anyone who even reminds you of them. Babe Ruth may have been the greatest offensive force in the history of the game, but there are seasons by Jimmie Foxx, Lou Gehrig, Hank Greenberg, the Steroid Era Barry Bonds and others who would fit neatly into his career.

I thought this writer made some really good points and some really bad ones. I totally agree that Ichiro is unique, is a hall of fame player, and certainly worthy of the recognition he recieved in this article.

On the other hand, for him to try and mimimalize the uniqueness of other players to build someone else up makes me wonder how much this guy really understands baseball. Babe Ruth was unique on a number of fronts. Still probably the most famous player the game has ever produced. Beyond that, if they want to minimize Ruth's offensive numbers how do you explain that Ruth was an unbelievable pitcher? I could go down the list of greats like Williams, Mays, Clemente, Gehrig, Cobb, Gibson, Koufax, etc. We will never see their like again just as I suspect we will never see someone like Ichiro again.

All I know is I got to watch two of the current greats of the game yesterday in AZ for a Spring Training game...Ichiro and Griffey Jr.

Highlight of the day? Griffey Jr.'s walkoff grand slam to beat the Reds, 6-5. He hit it on a 3-2 count.

quote:

Originally posted by ClevelandDad:
On the other hand, for him to try and mimimalize the uniqueness of other players to build someone else up makes me wonder how much this guy really understands baseball.

His job is to write articles that sell copy and what he does know, or does not know may be irrelevant as long as the story sells. However, to write at that level I would give him the benefit of the doubt that he knows the game well, but maybe not to our POV.

Yeah, it's pretty apparent that the writer is a big fan, although I bet he has plenty of company. I didn't see too much in the way of minimalizing others accomplishments in any debate about how to rank players greatness you need to use comparative statistics to some degree. I don't think anyone can argue he is one of the premier impact players in recent history.

My son has worn 51 a;s his # for the last 5 years, and still uses it in his email adress. His favorite team is the Yankees, but fav player by far is Ichy. As a smaller guy he emulates him, and i can't argue with his choices. My oldest was a big McGuire fan, hopefully there won't be any tarnish when all is said and done with Ichiros career.

His history is an interesting read as well - talk about an involved dad!

Saying that there was none like Ichiro is a bit of a stretch---He cannot touch Willie Mays in terms of talent and charisma

quote:

Originally posted by TRhit:
Saying that there was none like Ichiro is a bit of a stretch---He cannot touch Willie Mays in terms of talent and charisma

That is exactly what I am saying.

What about Art Shamsky?

When you talk Shamsky you need to talk to ITS

quote:

Originally posted by TRhit:
Saying that there was none like Ichiro is a bit of a stretch---He cannot touch Willie Mays in terms of talent and charisma

I don't believe that is what the article is saying. The author is not comparing or trying to compare Ichiro with Mays. He readily acknowledges Ichiro does not play the game like Mays played it.
To me, all this article advocates is for baseball fans to be open to all the ways the game can be played and be played at a very, very high level.
The author is proposing that Ichiro plays the game in a way similar to the way and success only a few had and they played in the dead ball era.
To the best of my knowledge, the dead ball era predates Mays. All this article says is that if you love baseball, love the fact it can be played in such a unique way at such a high level.
No one would ever confuse Mays and Ichiro on a baseball field. You can still cherish the unique manner in which they play, compete and succeed, and right now we have the opportunity while Ichiro is still playing.

quote:

Originally posted by bsbl247:
infdad,

Nice article, Ichiro is a Stud and more importantly, seems to be a pretty good role model for the kids.

Our family was in Seattle for the same series you attended in August. We attended the game that Sabathia was on the mound, and Jeter went yard. Safeco is a nice ballpark and Seattle is a beautiful city to visit, we had a great time!

Our hotel was directly across the street from a downtown movie theatre. We caught a movie on our last day in the late morning, and saw Jeter & Cano at the threatre. I think my daughter scared Jeter!

bsbl, What a coincidence.
We loved Seattle. Took the Ferry and walked all over. Beautiful, just beautiful.
We also like Safeco and the fun of watching Jeter and Ichiro in the same series. We both love the way they play the game.
The one thing I will never forget about that series is I found a new love for grass growing. I found it was easier to watch than watching Andy Pettite and the amount of time between pitches when he gets in a jam.

quote:

Originally posted by TRhit:
Saying that there was none like Ichiro is a bit of a stretch---He cannot touch Willie Mays in terms of talent and charisma

Posnanski didn't say Ichiro was better than anybody. Just unique.

quote:

Griffey, Ichiro, Jeter, and Rodrigeuz

When the Mariners play the Yankees there are 5 first ballot HOF (Rivera with the list above)... Does any other matchup this year best that?

trojan, thanks for adding #42, I forgot about him.

Going to be some awesome Photo-ops when those guys play this year (am I leaving anybody else out off those 2 teams?)

quote:

Originally posted by infielddad:

bsbl, What a coincidence.
We loved Seattle. Took the Ferry and walked all over. Beautiful, just beautiful.
We also like Safeco and the fun of watching Jeter and Ichiro in the same series. We both love the way they play the game.
The one thing I will never forget about that series is I found a new love for grass growing. I found it was easier to watch than watching Andy Pettite and the amount of time between pitches when he gets in a jam.

INFDAD-
Were you and your wife able to take the Duck Tour? Our family had a blast on that tour, it wasn't very long, but a good time! We also rode on the ferry, and did a ton of walking. Like I said earlier, it was a great city to visit, however, I'm quite happy where I live. We were lucky that Sabathia was on the bump the night we attended Safeco. It's amazing how good his mechanics are for a man that size!

trojan-skipper:

Way too early to know for sure but C. C. Sabathia with 136 wins by the age of 29 projects to win 260+ games although injuries or his weight could cause falling way short of this total. I know you're probably just talking about guys who already have it clinched.

I grew up in Illinois, first about 30 miles south of Chicago and later on in the western part of the state. I have been and always will be a Cub fan.

Seattle is a special baseball place and Safeco field is an outstanding venue for watching the game. I loved taking my son back to Illinois to Wrigley Field so he could soak up the nostalgia of an old time park but Safeco is a fantastic place to go see a game. There literally is no bad seat in the house.

Ichiro will never make the all time great lists, he started out too late in the US but he is very accomplished and is an oustanding player.