Fansided

For no particular reason, here’s Ichiro meeting Michael Jordan in 1995 (Video)

By Josh Hill

SEATTLE, WA - MAY 3: Ichiro Suzuki #51 (R) of the Seattle Mariners jokes with hitting coach Edgar Martinez in the dugout before a game against the Oakland Athletics at Safeco Field on May 3, 2018 in Seattle, Washington. The Mariners announced before the game that Ichiro would transition out of a playing role for 2018 and into the front office as a special assistant to the chairman, effective today. Ichiro's agent said that the 10-time All-Star is not retiring, leaving open the possibility of returning to the field in 2019, according to published reports. (Photo by Stephen Brashear/Getty Images)
SEATTLE, WA - MAY 3: Ichiro Suzuki #51 (R) of the Seattle Mariners jokes with hitting coach Edgar Martinez in the dugout before a game against the Oakland Athletics at Safeco Field on May 3, 2018 in Seattle, Washington. The Mariners announced before the game that Ichiro would transition out of a playing role for 2018 and into the front office as a special assistant to the chairman, effective today. Ichiro's agent said that the 10-time All-Star is not retiring, leaving open the possibility of returning to the field in 2019, according to published reports. (Photo by Stephen Brashear/Getty Images) /
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Ichiro might not know who Tom Brady is, but he absolutely knows who Michael Jordan is and it’s adorable.

Have you ever been watching an old show and recognized a background character as someone really famous (or famous-ish) before they hit the big time? A recent re-watching of Malcolm in the Middle provided more than a few of these moments, and it’s a trip to consider where that person’s career would go from there. Who knew, at that moment, this unknown actor would one day be someone who was on an Emmy-winning television series or collecting a Golden Globe for their performance in something.

Something like this happened way back in 1995 when one of Japan’s biggest baseball stars met perhaps the most famous person on the planet. Ichiro will go down as one of the most iconic players to have ever graced American baseball, but he didn’t arrive until 2001. Once he hit, Ichiro was a sports phenomenon, and some might argue it was because we had a void left by Michael Jordan to fill.

Before Ichiro took America or Michael Jordan left the game of basketball (kinda), their two worlds collided in the mid-90s. Ichiro, who at the time was the Michael Jordan of Japanese baseball, met the Chicago Bulls legend in one of those before they were famous moments.

And it was perfection.

Highlights:

  • Ichiro is clearly the star of this video despite Michael Jordan being involved
  • That Tom & Jerry sweater
  • When they shake hands and he says ‘My name is Ichiro’, you’re not human if you didn’t get chills
  • Ichiro had no idea who Tom Brady was but got nervous meeting MJ.

That’s really the purpose of this. When Ichiro said that he didn’t know who Tom Brady was, it was a big deal because everyone knows who Brady is. But that carries even more weight when you see the authentic joy that Ichiro has when he met Michael Jordan when silimarly EVERYONE knew who he was.

Rub some TB12 salt water in the wound, Tom.

You also have no idea how badly I’ve been wanting to write about this since discovering this was a thing. The post-Ichiro world is a dark one, but that only makes us hungrier for the light. Nothing is brighter than a pre-MLB Ichiro meeting peak Michael Jordan while wearing a Tom & Jerry turtleneck.

The universe so rarely gives us perfect moments like this. Let’s do the right thing and cherish this until the end of time.

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