Sports

Ichiro Strikes Out 17 Against Japan's All-Star Girls

Is this a former pro's ego trip at children's' expense or the highest form of respect?

Published SEP 18

Ichiro Strikes Out 17 Against Japan's All-Star Girls

Story

Above: Ichiro Suzuki during a number retirement ceremony at T-Mobile Park in Seattle, Wash., on May 2. Image credit: Olivia Vanni/Getty Images

The Facts

Major League Baseball Hall of Famer Ichiro Suzuki threw a complete-game shutout Sunday at the Tokyo Dome, recording 17 strikeouts on 127 pitches against a team of Japan's top high school girls baseball players. He also led off the game and collected two hits.
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Bleacher Report
The exhibition is an annual All-Star game hosted by Suzuki, who is 52. Rather than appearing for an inning or two, he pitches the entire game, and this year's contest drew a reported 25,000 fans and also featured former Yankees outfielder Hideki Matsui.
OutKick
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The Seattle Times
Speaking to reporters in Japanese after the game, Suzuki said, "I wanted to see what my current limits were, and this gave me confidence in myself." Reports noted his velocity and command held steady through all 127 pitches.
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Yakima Herald
This follows a 2024 outing during which he threw a 116-pitch shutout with nine strikeouts in the same event, and in 2021, he struck out 17 teenage batters while throwing 147 pitches.
The Chronicle (Lewis County, Wash.)
OutKick
Suzuki played 19 seasons in the majors from 2001 to 2019 with the Seattle Mariners, New York Yankees and Miami Marlins. He was a 10-time All-Star and Gold Glove winner and won American League MVP honors as a rookie in 2001.
The Chronicle (Lewis County, Wash.)
Bleacher Report
Suzuki became the first Japanese player elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in July 2025, and the Mariners retired his No. 51 a month later. He works as a special assistant to the team's chairman and recorded 4,367 professional hits.
The Seattle Times
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Bleacher Report

Sources Split

LEFT

CENTER

RIGHT

ESTAB
CRIT

CENTER

PRO
ESTAB

The Spin

Narrative A

A 52-year-old Hall of Famer firing 86-mph heat at high school girls for a complete game shutout isn't a celebration of the sport, but a grown man padding his ego at kids' expense. Seventeen strikeouts over 127 pitches proves nothing except that a legend refuses to share the spotlight. Let the girls actually play the game instead of serving as props.

Autism Capital on X

OutKick

Narrative B

Going full effort against Japan's best high school girls is the highest form of respect, and anything less would be condescending. That All-Star game gives young women a real showcase in a country where girls have had almost no path in baseball, and 25,000 fans at the Tokyo Dome showed up because Ichiro treats it as legitimate competition. Real growth comes from being tested, not coddled.

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