Former Seattle Mariners infielder Alex Rodriguez took to "X" to congratulate Ichiro Suzuki and share a funny story about his former teammate.

BBWAA secretary-treasurer Jack O’Connell recalled Suzuki was at the Hall in 2001 when he called to inform the Seattle star he had been voted AL Rookie of the Year. Suzuki received 27 of 28 first-place votes, all but one from an Ohio writer who selected Sabathia.

Fellow Hall of Famer Derek Jeter, named on all but one ballot back in 2020, knows a little about what Ichiro experienced this week.

There was no surprise when it was announced that Ichiro Suzuki would enter the Baseball Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility. What was a surprise, though, was that one baseball writer didn’t think Ichiro deserved first-ballot consideration.

Seattle Mariners legend Ichiro Suzuki became the newest member of the National Baseball Hall of Fame. Ichiro was voted into Cooperstown in his first year of eligibility, and appeared on 393 of 394 ballots.

Ichiro Suzuki said he wants to meet with the one person who voted against his induction into the Hall of Fame after he fell one vote shy of being unanimous.

At a Hall of Fame news conference, Ichiro joined the ranks of many people around the globe in wondering why he didn’t get that one vote.

Players are elected to the Hall of Fame provided they are named on at least 75% of ballots cast by eligible voting members of the BBWAA. With 394 ballots submitted in the 2025 election, candidates needed to receive 296 votes to be elected.

The five newcomers, including Ichiro Suzuki and CC Sabathia, will be inducted into the Hall of Fame on July 27, 2025, in Cooperstown, New York.

Ichiro Suzuki, C.C. Sabathia and Billy Wagner were elected as the newest members of the National Baseball Hall of Fame, the museum announced.

The first time Seattle Mariners fans saw Ichiro Suzuki was April 2, 2001, on Opening Day against the Oakland Athletics at what was then known as Safec