Ichiro Suzuki finally hung up his cleats last Thursday, ending a storied career. He is a sure fire hall of famer, one of the greatest to play the sport of baseball. But his career isn't just his 3,089 hits, his ten straight gold gloves or his 200 hit streak which will most likely never be broken. Ichiro will be a hall of famer, maybe even an unanimous one, because of what he meant to sports. As an Asian-American, Ichiro was a hero. He was a role-model for us, in an age where there weren't really Asians in American sports. He was the first super-star. And the first super star that we thought we could be like. Yao Ming would come over a year later, but all of us knew we couldn't be Yao. We could be Ichiro. He was small, like so many of us, not a physical specimen. He slap hit singles, stole bases, was an immaculate fielder. It felt like we could be those things. He gave us hope that we could be professional athletes, more than any Asian athlete before and possibly since. And he was a true bridge for Japanese players to come to America. He proved that the the Japanese (and Asians in general) could not only hang with the Americans, but be on top. Ichiro meant so much more than just his numbers, (which were fantastic don't get me wrong. I truly believe if he came over for his whole career he would have the hits record and go down as the 1 or 2 greatest right fielders ever.) he was an inspiration to a whole generation of Asian-Americans. So goodbye, Ichiro, and thanks for everything you have done.
