Cubs: Seiya Suzuki in same conversation as Babe Ruth and Barry Bonds

Seiya Suzuki’s sensational MLB debut earlier this month rivals the career starts of MLB legends like Barry Bonds and Babe Ruth. 

Chicago Cubs outfielder Seiya Suzuki made his MLB debut early in April, and his Major League potential has been on full display ever since. In just under two weeks, Suzuki has made history multiple times and is already on track to become the NL Rookie of the Year. Suzuki was one of two players named Player of the Week presented by Chevrolet.

The Cubs are undefeated so far this season, and Suzuki has been a huge contributor to that success. He has only been at-bat 28 times in his MLB career and has already produced four home runs, two doubles and 12 total hits. His slugging percentage is .929, which is extremely high, but it can’t be taken into consideration until Suzuki gets more plate appearances. He has only made 39 plate appearances, and he will likely have a less-weighted stat by the end of the season.

How does Seiya Suzuki compare to Babe Ruth and Barry Bonds?

A distinguished baseball player in the NPB, Suzuki enters MLB company as one of the strongest rookie hitters in league history. He broke out as the only player in MLB history with 8+ RBI and 4+ walks over the first four games of his career, according to Stats by STATS on Twitter.

Other legendary players in MLB history, such as Babe Ruth and Barry Bonds, racked up high stats over the course of their respective careers, but neither player immediately broke out in their baseball debuts. Ruth and Bonds are two of the best batters in MLB history, but they honed their unparalleled slugging skills over several seasons. In Bonds’ first MLB season, he produced 16 home runs, which is comparable to his career-best of 46 home runs seven seasons later.

Ruth didn’t produce any home runs in his first MLB season — in fact, Ruth didn’t get much exposure at all, finishing the 1914 season with just 10 plate appearances. However, as his career progressed, he consistently made more appearances and had a career-best of 60 home runs in his 1927 season, 13 years after his MLB debut.

Within Suzuki’s first two weeks of his MLB career, he is a quarter of the way to Bonds’ first-season home runs and has already surpassed Ruth’s. If he continues to develop and perform at a consistent rate, he will be as big of a name as Ruth and Bonds.