Hitting Jackpot

No. 258 for Ichiro Suzuki was like so many others, a little ground ball up the middle.

Only this one made history -- a hit cheered ‘round the world.

Suzuki set the major league record for hits in a season Friday night, breaking George Sisler’s 84-year-old mark with two early singles, then adding a third base hit for No. 259 as the Seattle Mariners beat the Texas Rangers, 8-3.

“Through my career, I think this is the best moment,” Suzuki said through an interpreter. “I can’t really put it into words.”

Suzuki, who ended the night with a major league-leading .373 average, chopped a leadoff single in the first inning, then put himself in the record book with a bouncer in the third.

Fireworks exploded after Suzuki’s big hit reached the outfield, creating a haze over Safeco Field, and his teammates mobbed him at first base.

With fans still cheering, Suzuki ran to the first-base seats and shook hands with Sisler’s 81-year-old daughter, Frances Sisler Drochelman, and other members of the Hall of Famer’s family.

“My father would have been delighted,” Drochelman said later. “He would be so happy to know such a fine young man was doing so well.”

Across the Pacific, fans in downtown Tokyo watched Suzuki in sports bars and on big-screen monitors.

“Baseball is America’s sport, so for a Japanese player to go over there and break that record is truly amazing,” office worker Shigeru Uchida said. “I think Ichiro has changed the way people look at the game. He’s shown that it’s not just about power and there’s a lot of skill and technique involved.”

Fans booed when plate umpire Joe West called a rare third strike on Suzuki in the eighth. Reliever Michael Tejera got the strikeout.

But fans were back on their feet when Suzuki left for substitute Hiram Bocachica with two out in the ninth. Mariner Manager Bob Melvin made the move to let Suzuki get one more ovation, and the right fielder jogged in to cheers.

Sisler set the hits record in 1920 with the St. Louis Browns over a 154-game schedule. Suzuki broke it in the Mariners’ 160th game of the year.

Suzuki’s first two hits came off Ryan Drese (14-10), boosting Suzuki to 10-for-20 lifetime against him. Suzuki’s sixth-inning infield single came off John Wasdin.

Drese ran the count full in the third, and Suzuki hit a bouncer up the middle, out of the reach of shortstop Michael Young.

There was a scary moment for Suzuki in the top of the third. The Gold Glove right fielder chased a foul ball by Ken Huckaby that landed in the stands, and casually hopped up on the low, padded fence -- but then lost his balance.

Suzuki fell awkwardly and came down straddling the fence, but was OK.

“I was very excited.... Maybe I was going along with that. I’m glad nothing happened,” he said.

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IchiroÕs hit parade

Ichiro Suzuki, who broke an 84-year-old record Friday for the most hits in a single major league season, bypassed some legendary names to break George SislerÕs mark of 257 hits.

Leader of the pack Most hits, single season

Rank Player Year Hits 1 Ichiro Suzuki 2004 259 2 George Sisler 1920 257 T3 Lefty O’Doul 1929 254 T3 Bill Terry 1930 254 5 Al Simmons 1925 253 T6 Rogers Hornsby 1922 250 T6 Chuck Klein 1930 250 8 Ty Cobb 1911 248 9 George Sisler 1922 246 10 Ichiro Suzuki 2001 242 ** Bye, George SislerÕs and IchiroÕs stats

Ichiro-2004* Sisler-1920 Games 159 154 At-bats 695 631 Runs 101 137 Hits 259 257 Home runs 8 19 Runs batted in 60 122 Walks 49 46 Strikeouts 62 19 Stolen bases 36 42 Batting average .373 .407 On-base percentage .416 .449 Slugging percentage .456 .632

*through 10/1

Sources: Seattle Mariners, MLB.com Graphics reporting by Joel Greenberg