The Seattle Mariners are immortalizing franchise legend Ichiro Suzuki even more. The team announced Saturday that it will be creating a statue of Ichiro that will sit outside T-Mobile Park, with the statue set to be unveiled next season.
Mariners chairman John Stanton made the announcement during a jersey retirement ceremony for Ichiro, where the Mariners retired the right fielder’s No. 51 in conjunction with him becoming a first-ballot Hall of Famer. Ichiro was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame last month as part of the Class of 2025.
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Per the release, the statue will feature Ichiro in his signature batting stance, with his left hand on his right shoulder and his right hand holding the bat aloft.
Ichiro will become the fourth Mariners player to have a statue outside T-Mobile Park, joining sportscaster Dave Niehaus, and franchise legends Ken Griffey Jr. and Edgar Martinez. Niehaus’ statue was put up first, in 2011, followed by Griffey in 2017 and Martinez in 2021.
On Saturday, Ichiro followed up his memorable Hall of Fame speech with a similarly heartfelt speech in front of the Seattle crowd. Griffey Jr. and Martinez, the only other Mariners with their numbers retired, were present for the event.
Ichiro’s 51 will be joined by another No. 51 next year, as the team retires the number of pitcher Randy Johnson. Johnson sported the same number as Ichiro a decade before the right fielder joined the Mariners.
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