is a Japanese former

professional baseball Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Modern professiona ...

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the Baseball (ball), baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of out (baseball), retiring a batter (baseball), batter, who attempts to e ...

. Over his career, Suzuki played 18 seasons in professional baseball, including six in

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL) ...

and two in the Japan Pacific League. In his major league career, he has played for the

Seattle Mariners The Seattle Mariners are an American professional baseball team based in Seattle. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. The team joined the American League as an expansion team ...

(1996, 1998–1999), the

Kansas City Royals The Kansas City Royals are an American professional baseball team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Royals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team was founded as an expa ...

(1999–2001, 2002), the

Colorado Rockies The Colorado Rockies are an American professional baseball team based in Denver. The Rockies compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. The team plays its home baseball games at Coors Fi ...

(2001), and the

Milwaukee Brewers The Milwaukee Brewers are an American professional baseball team based in Milwaukee. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. The Brewers are named for the city's association wi ...

(2001). With those teams, he has had a combined

record A record, recording or records may refer to: An item or collection of data Computing * Record (computer science), a data structure ** Record, or row (database), a set of fields in a database related to one entity ** Boot sector or boot record, ...

of 16–31 with a 5.72

earned run average In baseball statistics, earned run average (ERA) is the average of earned runs allowed by a pitcher per nine innings pitched (i.e. the traditional length of a game). It is determined by dividing the number of earned runs allowed by the numb ...

(ERA), one

complete game In baseball, a complete game (CG) is the act of a pitcher pitching an entire game without the benefit of a relief pitcher. A pitcher who meets this criterion will be credited with a complete game regardless of the number of innings played—pit ...

, one

shutout In team sports, a shutout ( US) or clean sheet ( UK) is a game in which one team prevents the other from scoring any points. While possible in most major sports, they are highly improbable in some sports, such as basketball. Shutouts are usuall ...

, 67 starts and 327

strikeouts In baseball or softball, a strikeout (or strike-out) occurs when a batter accumulates three strikes during a time at bat. It usually means that the batter is out. A strikeout is a statistic recorded for both pitchers and batters, and is deno ...

in 117 games pitched.

Early life

At the age of 16, Suzuki was sent away from his home by his parents after getting expelled from

high school A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...

. He then got a job with the

Salinas Spurs Several minor league baseball teams have been based in Salinas, California and played in the California League. Salinas Spurs The Salinas Spurs were a California League team that played from 1982 to 1987 and again from 1989 to 1992. Located in ...

, an unaffiliated club in the California League based in

Salinas, California Salinas (; Spanish for "Salt Marsh or Salt Flats") is a city in California and the county seat of Monterey County. With a population of 163,542 in the 2020 Census, Salinas is the most populous city in Monterey County. Salinas is an urban area ...

. With the Spurs, Suzuki pitched the final game of the season in 1992, after he spent the entire season as their laundry boy. The next season, Suzuki became a full-time player for the San Bernardino Spirit. Suzuki later stated that his parents were proud of him for learning the English language and how much he matured after he was sent away.

Professional career

Seattle Mariners

Suzuki pitched for the non-affiliated Class-A

San Bernardino San Bernardino (; Spanish for "Saint Bernardino") is a city and county seat of San Bernardino County, California, United States. Located in the Inland Empire region of Southern California, the city had a population of 222,101 in the 2020 cens ...

in 1993, going 4–4 with a 3.68

(ERA), 12 saves, and 87 strikeouts in 48 games, one

start Start can refer to multiple topics: *Takeoff, the phase of flight where an aircraft transitions from moving along the ground to flying through the air * Starting lineup in sports * Standing start, and rolling start, in an auto race Acronyms * ...

. He led the Spirit in saves that season. Suzuki signed with the

in 1993, choosing Seattle over a list of suitors including the

Toronto Blue Jays The Toronto Blue Jays are a Canadian professional baseball team based in Toronto. The Blue Jays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Since 1989, the team has played its home games ...

. In his first season in affiliated professional baseball in 1994, Suzuki pitched for the Double-A

Jacksonville Suns The Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League (IL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the Miami Marlins. They are located in Jacksonville, Florida, and are named for shrimp caught in the area. The team pl ...

of the Southern League. In eight games, he went 1–0 with a 2.84 ERA, one save, and 10 strikeouts. Suzuki was sidelined that season due to a

shoulder The human shoulder is made up of three bones: the clavicle (collarbone), the scapula (shoulder blade), and the humerus (upper arm bone) as well as associated muscles, ligaments and tendons. The articulations between the bones of the shoulder m ...

injury. After an earthquake hit his home town on

Kobe, Japan Kobe ( , ; officially , ) is the capital city of Hyōgo Prefecture Japan. With a population around 1.5 million, Kobe is Japan's seventh-largest city and the third-largest port city after Tokyo and Yokohama. It is located in Kansai region, whi ...

, Suzuki returned to care for his family during the off-season before the 1995 season. During

spring training Spring training is the preseason in Major League Baseball (MLB), a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the regular season. Spring training allows new players to try out for roster and position spots, and gives estab ...

in 1995, Suzuki was again plagued by shoulder injuries. He split the season between the rookie-league

AZL Mariners The Arizona Complex League Mariners are a Rookie-level affiliate of the Seattle Mariners, competing in the Arizona Complex League of Minor League Baseball. The team plays its home games at Peoria Sports Complex in Peoria, Arizona. The team is co ...

and the Class-A Advanced

Riverside Pilots The Riverside Pilots were a Minor League Baseball team in Riverside, California. They were a Class A-Advanced team that played in the California League, and were a farm team of the Seattle Mariners. In spite of making the playoffs each year of it ...

. In ten combined games in the minors, Suzuki went 1–1 with a 5.40 ERA, and nine strikeouts. Suzuki was promoted to the majors in 1995, however, he did not play. He made his major league debut on July 7, , becoming the third Japanese player to play in the major leagues, after

Masanori Murakami Masanori "Mashi" Murakami (村上雅則, ''Murakami Masanori'', born May 6, 1944) is a retired Japanese baseball player. He is notable for being the first Japanese player to play for a Major League Baseball team. Sent over to the United States ...

and

Hideo Nomo is a Japanese former baseball pitcher who played in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) and Major League Baseball (MLB). He achieved early success in his native country, where he played with the Kintetsu Buffaloes from to . He then exploite ...

, and the first Japanese player to pitch in the

American League The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league ...

. He was sent back to the minors shortly afterwards, but marked his first major league win in .

Later career

He was sent briefly to the

New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. They are one of two major leagu ...

in June, , before being shipped away again to the Kansas City Royals. He won 8 games in , including one shut-out victory. He went to the Colorado Rockies, then to the Milwaukee Brewers, before returning to the Royals again. He did not win a game in , and was released by the Royals. He announced his decision to enter the Japanese professional leagues at the end of the season. According to regulations, Suzuki still needed to be picked in the draft to join a Japanese team. The

Yakult Swallows The Tokyo Yakult Swallows () are a Japanese professional baseball team competing in Nippon Professional Baseball's Central League. Based in Shinjuku, Tokyo, they are one of two professional baseball teams based in Tokyo, the other being the Yom ...

had originally intended to choose him, but the

Orix BlueWave , styled as ORIX, is a Japanese diversified financial services group headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, and Osaka, Japan. ORIX offers leasing, lending, rentals, life insurance, real estate financing and development, venture capital, investment an ...

forcefully picked Suzuki in the 2nd round, and he ended up joining the Blue Wave. There was debate about whether Suzuki qualified for the Japanese rookie of the year award, since he had already played in the major leagues. The league granted him the qualification, but Suzuki rejected it, perhaps due to his pride as a former major leaguer. In the end, the debate proved meaningless, as Suzuki won only 4 games that year, and in August, , he could not get a single out in a game against the

Fukuoka Daiei Hawks The are a Japanese professional baseball team based in Fukuoka, Fukuoka Prefecture. They compete in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) as a member of the Pacific League. The team was formerly known as the Nankai Hawks and was based in Osaka. ...

, where his team lost 1-29. He pitched horrendously against the Hawks in 2003, giving up 32 runs in only 6 games. In , he started only 5 games (none of which were against the Hawks), all of which he failed to get past the 5th inning. His only win that year came against the

Osaka Kintetsu Buffaloes The were a Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) team based in Osaka, Japan, which was in the Pacific League. In 2005 the team was merged with the Orix BlueWave to become the team now known as the Orix Buffaloes. The team played in Fujiidera Stad ...

, where he won despite giving up 5 runs over 5 innings. He did not pitch at all in , and was cut from the team during the off-season. Suzuki returned to the United States, and signed a minor league contract with the

Oakland Athletics The Oakland Athletics (often referred to as the A's) are an American professional baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Athletics compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. The t ...

in December, 2005. He pitched poorly in

, and did not make the major league team. He joined

Olmecas de Tabasco The Olmecas de Tabasco (English: Tabasco Olmecs) are a professional baseball team in the Mexican League based in Villahermosa, Tabasco, Mexico. Their home ballpark is the Estadio Centenario 27 de Febrero. The Olmecas won their only Mexica ...

of the

Mexican League The Mexican League (, ) is a professional baseball league based in Mexico and the oldest running professional league in the country. The league has 18 teams organized in two divisions, North and South. Teams play 114 games each season. Five te ...

in , and signed a minor league deal with the

Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as part of the National League (NL) Central division. The club plays its home games at Wrigley Field, which is locate ...

in the 2006 off-season. In 2009, he played for the Southern Maryland Blue Crabs of the independent Atlantic Professional Baseball League. In 2010, he signed with the Calgary Vipers of the

Golden Baseball League The Golden Baseball League was an independent baseball league based in San Ramon, California, with teams located in the western United States, western Canada and northwest Mexico. The GBL was not affiliated with Major League Baseball or the organ ...

. In 2011 Suzuki was announced as an instructor for the

California Winter League California Winter League is a former baseball winter league. It was the first integrated league in the 20th century as players from Major League Baseball and Negro league baseball played each other in training games. The league was in existence f ...

(CWL) located in Palm Springs, Ca. He is currently involved with Japanese Independent baseball and was also a player in the CWL in the 2010 season.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Suzuki, Mac 1975 births Living people Águilas de Mexicali players Algodoneros de Guasave players Arizona League Mariners players Bravos de Margarita players Calgary Vipers players Cañeros de Los Mochis players Colorado Rockies players Dorados de Chihuahua players Iowa Cubs players Jacksonville Suns players Japanese expatriate baseball players in Canada Japanese expatriate baseball players in Mexico Japanese expatriate baseball players in Taiwan Japanese expatriate baseball players in the United States La New Bears players Leones del Escogido players Japanese expatriate baseball players in the Dominican Republic Major League Baseball pitchers Major League Baseball players from Japan Mexican League baseball pitchers Milwaukee Brewers players Olmecas de Tabasco players Omaha Royals players Orix BlueWave players Orix Buffaloes players Baseball people from Kobe Kansas City Royals players Port City Roosters players Potros de Tijuana players Riverside Pilots players Salinas Spurs players San Bernardino Spirit players Seattle Mariners players Southern Maryland Blue Crabs players Tacoma Rainiers players Tiburones de La Guaira players Japanese expatriate baseball players in Venezuela Tigres de Aragua players Tomateros de Culiacán players Wichita Wranglers players