Literally…
Cute kid.
BWT, NTT is Nippon Telegraph and Telephone.
Mariners Mojo was a free comic distributed at Seattle-area McDonald’s in 2002. In issue #2 of 2, Ichiro and his ’02 teammates (including Jamie Moyer, Kazuhiro Sasaki, Edgar Martinez, Bret Boone and Ruben Sierra) use their superhero powers to battle Bigfoot. They later become friends.
Ichiro was the cover story of the May 28, 2001 Sports Illustrated.
For several years the above cover was posted on the wall of my apartment at the address shown on the mailing label; below is what the photo originally looked like.
Last month I did a post commemorating the tenth anniversary of The Throw, but the accompanying video on YouTube has since been removed. The clip was taken from acclaimed PBS film Baseball: The Tenth Inning, though I actually prefer this totally bonkers version…
The genius who made this could teach Ken Burns a thing or two.
At Bats: 4
Runs: 0
Hits, Game/Season: 0/58
Runs Batted In: 0
Walks: 0
Strikeouts: 2
Left on Base: 3
Average: .281
Box
Notes: Two strikeouts, two groundouts… Batting .184 in last ten games.
Next: Game 50 vs. New York, 7:10 Friday.
The other night I received an email from a guy named Josh Pope…
I recieved these two items when I was in Japan in 1996 on a team Indiana wrestling trip. We traveled to five different cities around tokyo and stayed with host families. As part of meeting a new family that I was going to be staying with we always exchanged gifts. I was looking for information on these two items when I came across your Ichiro Page.
After kindly offering to sell them to me, I suggested he’d probably make more money by posting ’em on eBay. So, here they are.
Auction ends at 4:10 a.m. Sunday.
At Bats: 4
Runs: 0
Hits, Game/Season: 0/58
Runs Batted In: 0
Walks: 0
Strikeouts: 0
Left on Base: 2
Average: .286
Box
Notes: Two groundouts, two flyouts.
Next: Game 49 at Minnesota, 10:10 a.m. Wednesday.
At Bats: 4
Runs: 1
Hits, Game/Season: 2/58
Runs Batted In: 1
Walks: 1
Strikeouts: 0
Left on Base: 1
Average: .292
Box
Notes: A pair of singles, a run, an RBI, and a key tenth-inning sacrifice bunt contribute to the M’s come-from-behind win in extra innings… Notched his 2,300th career MLB hit, becoming the second-fastest player to reach 2,300 (Al Simmons is first)… The M’s have now won six in a row, moving them a game below .500 and a game-and-a-half behind first-place Texas.
Next: Game 48 at Minnesota, 5:10 Tuesday.
Since the M’s were in San Diego last weekend to take on their inter-league “natural rivals,” and since my dad and sister live in San Diego, a road trip was clearly in order. Here are some of my far-from-professional photos, beginning with Ichiro heading to the cage for Friday’s batting practice…
He socked quite a few homers to right. Then he jogs out for fielding practice…
Felix threw a bullpen session while Ichiro (in upper-right corner) shagged some flies…
Then the King signed some autographs…
I love how the Western Metal Supply building in the background is incorporated into Petco Park, a beautiful venue where Ichiro led Team Japan to the 2006 World Baseball Classic championship. Here he leads the triumphant M’s off the field after Friday’s win…
The next night, he waits for the first pitch of Saturday’s game…
…and again leads the M’s off the field after Saturday’s win…
I didn’t bother taking any pictures Sunday, fearing the Padres’ gawd-awful camo unis would break my camera. In any event, I don’t think I’ve ever attended an entire three-game series before, and I certainly have never witnessed a Mariner sweep in person. I also have never eaten so many Friar Franks.
At Bats: 5
Runs: 0
Hits, Game/Season: 2/56
Runs Batted In: 1
Walks: 0
Strikeouts: 0
Left on Base: 1
Average: .293
Box
Notes: Singled, doubled, and drove in a run… The M’s sweep of the Padres in San Diego, and have now won five in a row… All hail Felix, as well as the rest of the pitching staff.
Next: Game 47 at Minnesota, 5:10 Monday.