"I got to meet him a few years ago and it was amazing" - Corbin Carroll admits he is a huge Ichiro Suzuki fan

Corbin Carroll was live with MLB.com to answer fan questions while being exclusive on Reddit. The 2023 NL rookie took time out of preseason training to answer questions via MLB.com's official Reddit account.

A fan asked Corbin about his favorite player in the MLB, and he gave a fitting reply by quoting Japanese legend Ichiro Suzuki's name. He also said that he had the opportunity to meet his idol a few years ago, and it was an amazing experience.

"I grew up a HUGE Ichiro fan. I got to meet him a few years ago and it was amazing," Corbin Carroll said.

Carroll helped his D-backs side reach the Fall Classic game last year since the ballclub had last played in the World Series in 2001 against the Yankees. Carroll went on to win the NL Rookie of the Year award last year, ahead of many other probable rookies.

In 2019, he was picked in a class that included future superstars like Bobby Witt Jr. and Adley Rutschman, who both were placed in the top four in the previous year's Rookie of the Year voting.

Ichiro Suzuki, one of the greatest hitters of all time, will be eligible for the first time to enter the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 2025. Players must have played in Major League Baseball for at least ten seasons and have been retired for five complete seasons in order to be eligible for the Hall of Fame.

Last season, finishing with 25 home runs and 54 stolen bases, Carroll also honored former Seattle Mariners player and former rookie of the year Ichiro Suzuki, an Asian outfielder.

"Being able to be listed with players like that, who I looked up to, that means a lot to me. Having my name next to his [Ichiro] in some way, he inspired a young Seattle kid and hopefully I can do that for the next generation," Carroll said.

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Corbin Carroll will be eyeing an even more prolific 2024 season

The first Diamondbacks player to earn Rookie of the Year last year was Corbin Carroll, who defeated a number of strong competitors, including outfielder James Outman of the LA Dodgers and pitcher Kodai Senga of the New York Mets.

By unanimous majority, he now joins the other thirteen winners of the National League honor. In the American League, Gunnar Henderson of the Baltimore Orioles won the award unanimously as well.

After a huge performance in the previous year, Carroll will set his eyes on the Fall Classic again in the 2024 season since he came very close to winning it all in his first full season for Arizona but fell short as the D-Backs lost to the Rangers 4-2 in the 2023 Fall Classic.