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Ichiro Suzuki was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame on Sunday as the ceremony took place in Cooperstown, New York.
On a day that was emotional for many, Suzuki brought humor to his speech. The former Seattle Mariners, New York Yankees and Miami Marlins outfielder received 393 out of a possible 394 votes to be elected to the Hall of Fame. Only Mariano Rivera was a unanimous first-ballot Hall of Famer.
Suzuki, in January, offered to meet with the lone writer for dinner to discuss the reasoning for being left off the ballot. The dinner didn’t appear to happen, and the legendary outfielder rescinded the invitation.
“Three thousand hits or 262 hits in one season are two achievements recognized by the writers,” he said. “Well, all but one.
“By the way, the offer for the writer to have dinner at my home has now expired.”
He also joked that he had never heard of the Marlins when the team offered him a contract.
“Honestly, when you guys offered me a contract in 2015, I had never heard of your team.”
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Suzuki joined the Hall of Fame in class with CC Sabathia and Billy Wagner. Dave Parker and Dick Allen were also elected via the Era Committee.
Suzuki had 3,089 hits, 10 All-Star appearances and 10 Gold Gloves during his career.
“Baseball is much more than just hitting, throwing and running. Baseball taught me to make valued decisions about what is important. It helped shape my view of life and the world. … The older I got, I realized the only way I could get to play the game I loved to the age of 45 at the highest level was to dedicate myself to it completely,” he said. “When fans use their precious time to see you play, you have a responsibility to perform for them whether you are winning by 10 or losing by 10.
“Baseball taught me what it means to be a professional and I believe that is the main reason I am here today. I could not have achieved the numbers without paying attention to the small details every single day consistently for all 19 seasons.”
He added that getting into the Baseball Hall of Fame was never really the goal but now that he has achieved it, he called the notion a “fantastic dream.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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