|
SEATTLE -- Ichiro Suzuki finished off the toughest season of his Major League career on Wednesday, going hitless in a 2-0 Mariners defeat that left his team with 95 losses.But speaking through interpreter Antony Suzuki, the Japanese star said that he hadn't felt pressure in the effort to reach 200 hits for a Major League-record 11th season, a bid that fell 16 shy with his career-low 184 hits."It' football bowl games s a little strange because this year I've never mentioned 200, ever, during the season, nor in spring training," said the 37-year-old, whose interviews with the U.S. media were rare this season. "Nor did I mention that last year. So I feel communication is very tough because I never mentioned that or thought about that."Psychology is very interesting from my standpoint, because you never know what football bowl games people think about when you don't show them. This year I felt like I learned a lot as a human being, not just as a player. Because that's a part of being who I am, knowing how people around me think psychologically."So were baseball writers wrong to think he was pressured by the pursuit of another 200-hit season?"Yes, by a lot," he said. "I don't think you guys have enough imagination."Manager Er football bowl games ic Wedge kept Ichiro in the leadoff role this season, playing him for 161 games in that spot as he rolled out a .310 on-base percentage that was well below his career .376 mark. His .272 batting average also fell far short of his career .331.For the first time in his 11 seasons, Ichiro didn't earn an All-Star berth and his string of 10 straight Gold Gloves could be in jeopardy as well.Wedge has sa football bowl games id in recent days that there's no guarantee he'll keep Ichiro in the leadoff role season, and will do whatever is best for the team. That has raised speculation that Ichiro might need to approach next year differently and perhaps try to be more of a run-producer rather than a leadoff-style hitter, but he laughed when that topic was raised."I don't understand why you think that," he said. "I've bee football bowl games n this style for 20 years, so it's hard for me to imagine doing that now."As for his relationship with Wedge, who he credited earlier this year with bringing a strong foundation and belief to the club, he was less expansive in his postseason summary."There's more to learn from each other," Ichiro said. "We've just been together one year now. It's tough to build relationships. Like, I've known you football bowl games guys for 11 years and still we're not always on the same page. So it's not easy to build relationships."Ichiro did sound an upbeat note when asked about the 18 rookies that surrounded him this season in the Seattle clubhouse."I look forward to all the positives," he said. "You see a lot of raw kids with decent talent. They all look positive. That's what I like about their attitude. Obviously we ha football bowl games ven't spent time throughout the long course of a season -- from Spring Training on -- so it's hard for me to evaluate how good they are, but I like the way they stay positive."But asked about his own season, Ichiro declined to offer any thoughts."I'll leave the evaluation to you guys," he told the media. "You guys are the professionals." football bowl games
|