, often known simply as , born October 22, 1973 in Toyoyama, Nishikasugai, Aichi Prefecture, Japan, is the right fielder for the Seattle Mariners Major League Baseball team. He moved to the United States in 2001 after playing for nine years for the Orix Blue Wave in Japan's Pacific League. When the Blue Wave granted his release after the 2000 season, Ichiro signed a contract with the Mariners. He became the first Japanese-born everyday position player in the Major Leagues. By all accounts, Ichiro has not suffered any significant decrease in performance after his transition to the American Major Leagues. Indeed, many believe that his performance in the Majors already surpasses his accomplished career in Japan.
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. Ichiro, equipped with arguably the strongest and most accurate throwing arm in the league, is widely regarded as one of the best defensive outfielders in baseball, winning a Gold Glove in each of his first five years in the majors.
Childhood preparation
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. The two began a daily routine which included throwing 50 pitches, hitting 200 pitches from Nobuyuki, fielding 50 infield balls and 50 outfield balls, and hitting 250–300 pitches from a machine.
thumb|left|200px|Ichiro Suzuki, all-time single-season Hit (baseball)|hits leader in Major League Baseball.
As a Little Leaguer, Ichiro had the word ''shūchū'' (集中—"concentration") written on his glove. 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. 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 and anime series that told of a young boy's difficult road to success as a professional baseball player, with rigorous training demanded by the father. According to Ichiro, "It bordered on hazing and I suffered a lot."
When Ichiro joined his high school baseball team, his father told the coach, "No matter how good Ichiro is, don't ever praise him. 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. Among
