Japanese baseball legend Ichiro Suzuki showed off his skills against high school girls.
As reported by Japanese media outlet Sportianex, Ichiro led his “Ichiro Selection Team” in a friendly game against a female high school baseball all-star team at the Tokyo Dome in Japan on July 21. The team won 4-0, led by Ichiro’s one-man show.
This is the third time in its history and the second year in a row that it has been held as part of a program to develop girls’ high school baseball, according to Sportianex.
Ichiro batted ninth and started the game. She threw 116 pitches in a nine-inning complete game victory. He allowed five hits and struck out nine. At the plate, he hit a double to right-center field and an infield single to second base to complete a 4-for-4, two-run multi-hit performance. Her fastball touched 138 mph.
It was an “Otani Experience,” as she showed off her uncompromising skills as a pitcher and hitter against high school girls.
Ichiro said, “First and foremost, I was really happy to get a hit. I was a pretty good hitter in the pros (4367 career hits in Japan and the U.S.), but I was frustrated that I didn’t get a hit in the last two games,” Ichiro said, prompting laughter from the fans who filled the Tokyo Dome.
Legendary Japanese pitcher Daisuke Matsuzaka was also in the lineup. Matsuzaka batted fourth and played shortstop, going 3-for-4 with a home run and an RBI. 보스토토
MLB.com, the official website of Major League Baseball, also had fun with the news.
“If Ichiro thought this game would be an event, he was mistaken. Most shocking of all, his fastball was 86 mph. Jamie Moyer, in his final big league season in 2012, was 49 at the time and his fastball averaged 78.6 mph. Ichiro was tongue-in-cheek when he said he could be pitching out of a big league bullpen right now.
At the same time, MLB.com noted the growth of women’s baseball in Japan.
“Women’s baseball in Japan is developing rapidly,” MLB.com wrote. It is ranked No. 1 in the world ahead of next year’s Women’s World Cup. There are 23,000 players on 102 teams in Japan. There’s also the Koshien, an amateur high school tournament that fills the country with excitement. “Playing in events like this will help boost the popularity of women’s baseball.