The underappreciated side of Ichiro

I miss the days of Ichiro. He was a great player, and put up solid stats. In all honesty, that's not the real reason that I loved watching him play.

If you know me, you know that I have been critical of the shift in sports to technical play. Most athletes are trying to master what they believe is the correct way to play a sport. We end up with a bunch of athletes that are nearly indistinguishable. More importantly, playing the right way takes away from creativity and excitement. Technical play is boring to watch.

When Ichiro came into the league, he did something unheard of in modern sports. He played his own style. He combined contact hitting with a unique ability to leave the batter's box in a hurry. This allowed him to rack up hits.

I have generally been more of a fan of hockey than baseball, but Ichiro alone was reason to watch the sport. Ichiro found a way to play the game in a way that was right for him rather than right for those her are obsessed with the technical side of the game. I don't mean that Ichiro didn't embrace certain technical elements, but he proved that you can be great without conforming to a rigid and boring approach to sports.