Bartolo Colon and Ichiro Suzuki don’t appear to have much in common. Colon, the Mets pitcher from the Dominican Republic, is known for his casual approach to the game and his spherical dimensions. Ichiro, the outfielder from Japan, is famous for being arguably the greatest contact hitter in baseball history and for his ageless physique.

But Colon and Ichiro, who will meet Saturday in Miami when the Mets take on the Marlins, are linked in at least one remarkable way: They are the only active major leaguers with birthdays in 1973—Colon on May 24 and Ichiro on Oct. 22.

Playing baseball professionally beyond 40 is substantial in itself—only five others have done it this season. To have two players achieve such longevity with styles and physiques as disparate as Barney Rubble and Mikhail Baryshnikov—they are separated by just 151 days of birth, but a whopping 115 pounds of girth—is a wonderful juxtaposition that fans should cherish while they still have the chance.

Colon recalls being surprised by what his fellow quadragenarian could accomplish with his pencil-thin frame when Ichiro hit a home run off him in 2003. “It wasn’t so much the pitch, but what he did with it,” Colon said. “You look at him and he’s really skinny, not someone you would expect to hit home runs.”

Ichiro has been equally surprised by Colon. “Certainly, you don’t see a physique like that in Japanese sports, aside from maybe golf or sumo,” Ichiro said. “But looks can be deceiving because he’s actually fleet and nimble.”