April 2, 2001

In what was one of the most anticipated arrivals in Seattle sports history, Ichiro burst onto the MLB stage with a two-hit debut. In typical Ichiro fashion, the hits were both singles that squeaked through the infield. Safeco Field erupted when Ichiro slapped his first hit up the middle – a hit that provided the opening salvo to a 242-hit MVP and Rookie of the Year season, and a legendary MLB career.

“He is bigger than Michael Jordan because everybody knows Ichiro,” a college student from Japan told The Seattle Times before his debut. “Nobody knows who is the prime minister of Japan or who is the president in the United States, but everyone knows Ichiro."

Highlights