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Thursday Afterschool Special: Ichiro!

The new hit king? Ichiro Suzuki's ninth inning double against the Padres yesterday gave him 4,257 combined professional hits for his time in the Japanese and

Sam Page

Thursday Afterschool Special: Ichiro!
Thursday Afterschool Special: Ichiro! /

The new hit king?

Ichiro Suzuki's ninth inning double against the Padres yesterday gave him 4,257 combined professional hits for his time in the Japanese and American pro leagues, one more than MLB hit king Pete Rose had in his career. Ichiro has 2,979 in his MLB career and 1,434 more from his 11 season with the Orix Buffaloes. It's quite an accomplishment, but it raises a contentious question: Has Ichiro dethroned Pete Rose?

For his part, Pete Rose says no, which has angered some fans. Defenders of Rose say his 427 minor league hits should be added to his total, since the American minors, like Japan's NPB, are professional leagues with weaker competition than MLB. Ichiro himself has been gracious, drawing a distinction between the two records. And the former Mariners star may have the last word when one day he's the only one of the two in the Hall of Fame.

Classic Ichiro photos

Ichiro Suzuki and Japan's Prime Minister Tomiichi Murayama :: Sankei Archive/Getty Images
Ichiro Suzuki :: Elaine Thompson/AP
Ichiro Suzuki :: AFP/Getty Images
Ichiro Suzuki / AP
Ichiro Suzuki :: Darren Carroll/SI
Ichiro Suzuki :: Brad Mangin/SI
Ichiro Suzuki :: Chuck Solomon/SI
Ichiro Suzuki :: V.J. Lovero/SI
Ichiro Suzuki :: V.J. Lovero/SI
Ichiro Suzuki :: Seth Wenig/AP
Ichiro Suzuki :: Mark J. Terrill/AP
Ichiro Suzuki :: Rod Mar/SI
Ichiro Suzuki :: John W. McDonough/SI
Ichiro Suzuki and President Barack Obama :: David Bergman/SI
Ichiro Suzuki :: Rod Mar/SI
Ichiro Suzuki :: Rod Mar/SI
Ichiro Suzuki :: Peter Read Miller/SI
Ichiro Suzuki :: Brad Mangin/SI
Ichiro Suzuki :: Charles Rex Arbogast/AP
Ichiro Suzuki :: Chuck Solomon/SI
Ichiro Suzuki and Matt Wieters :: Patrick McDermott/Getty Images
Ichiro Suzuki and Eduardo Nunez :: Erick W. Rasco/SI
Ichiro Suzuki and Jon Lester :: Matt Slocum/AP
Ichiro Suzuki :: Erick W. Rasco/SI

Ichiro pitching in Japan

There are a lot of great Ichiro videos on YouTube. This is but one.

You've probably already seen this...

...but I hadn't.

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Meeting Kanye at Disneyland

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Today's Peanuts

(Photo credit: Andy Hayt/San Diego Padres/Getty Images)

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Sam Page
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