Ichiro will go into the Hall of Fame as professional baseball’s all-time leader in hits with 4,367 (3,089 in MLB and 1,278 in Japan) — more even than Pete Rose's 4,256. He broke George Sisler’s single-season hits mark of 257 in 2004. The new mark is 262.

Pete Rose still holds the MLB record for career hits with 4,256, but Ichiro would be the hit king if you count the 1,278 hits he had in Japan. Ichiro reached 4,257 combined hits on June 15, 2016, with the Marlins, hitting a double off the San Diego Padres’ Fernando Rodney (remember him, Mariners fans?). Ichiro finished with 4,367 combined hits.

Expected to be the first Japanese player elected to the Cooperstown on Tuesday, Ichiro is a wellspring of national pride and his fame across the Pacific when he joined MLB was therapeutic for his

Mariano Rivera may soon have some company. As of Monday, Ichiro Suzuki had received votes on all ballots made public by voting-tracker Ryan Thibodaux (@NotMrTibbs on Bluesky). If that remains the case when the final results are released by the Baseball Writers Association of America on Tuesday,