I-C-H-I-R-O!

Since he came to America from Japan in 2001, no one has piled up more hits than the Seattle Mariners' Ichiro Suzuki... an amazing run of six straight 200 hit seasons, including a major league record 262 hits in 2004, have punctuated his success... not to mention his career .333 batting average is the best of any active major leaguer with more than 1,000 plate appearances. Though capable of hitting for power, Ichiro rarely displays it, instead using his incredble hand-eye coordination and speed to get LOTS of singles... with 258 stolen bases in his first 6 1/2 seasons, you also have to always be on the watch for him on the basepaths...

Last night, Ichiro put on a rare display of power and a not-so-rare display of speed, going 3-for-3 including a dramatic 2-run inside-the-park homer off the center field wall in the 5th inning to win the MVP honors as the junior circuit continued their domination with a 5-4 win... The inside-the-park homer was historic - the first one in All-Star Game history! The last time the National League won was in 1996... The Chicago Cubs' Alfonso Soriano made it interesting, homering after an infield single by the Washington Nationals' Dmitri Young to draw the National league within a run... three walks followed, but Francisco Rodriguez was able to get Aaron Rowand to fly out to pick up the save...

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