Christian Yelich honors ex-teammate Ichiro Suzuki on Hall of Fame induction

MLB and NPB legend Ichiro Suzuki has become the first Asian-born player to be inducted to the National Baseball Hall of Fame. Along with other greats like CC Sabathia, Billy Wagner, Dave Parker and Dick Allen, the Japanese superstar will be formally enshirined in the hallowed halls of Cooperstown in July.

Quick to extend his congratulations was former National League MVP Christian Yelich. Although the Seattle Mariners pops up to mind when hearing Suzuki's name, he spent some years away from the Emerald City to play for the New York Yankees and the Miami Marlins, where Yelich and Suzuki were teammates.

Christian Yelich extended his congratulations to former teammate Ichiro (Instagram)

"Never a doubt but now it's official! Congrats Ichiro on the HOF, it was an honor to share the field with you and watch you make history," said Yelich on Instagram.

Yelich and Suzuki spent three seasons together in South Beach and developed a bond as they manned the opposite sides of the outfield. In an ESPN article, Yelich also had nothing but praise and admiration for his former outfield partner.

"I grew up watching Ichiro as a kid. In middle school, high school and stuff like that. So when we first signed him, I was like, 'Oh s---, I'm going to be playing with him. That's crazy," said Yelich.

"He was a great teammate and a good friend, and it was an awesome experience playing with him and getting to watch him achieve a bunch of milestones because it was later in his career, so it felt like every game he was passing or tying somebody," he added.

In 2018, the outfield partnership came to an end when Yelich was acquired by the Brewers, while Ichiro Suzuki returmed to the Mariners for his closing years in the league.

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Ichiro Suzuki's star-studded career awarded both in Japan and US

Apart from being voted to the National Basketball Hall of Fame, Ichiro Suzuki also got inducted earlier this year into the Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame.

With that, the baseball icon became the first and only one to be inducted into both Hall of Fames. Moreover, the legend set a high bar and almost an unenviable feat of being inducted into both Hall of Fames in the same year.