The Seattle Mariners unveiled a statue honoring franchise legend Ichiro Suzuki on Friday, according to multiple reports. During the ceremony, the statue's bat broke when the curtain was pulled down, as reported by major media outlets. Ichiro Suzuki noticed the broken bat immediately and pointed upwards in astonishment, according to a major media source.
Ichiro Suzuki and Ken Griffey Jr. laughed at the mishap, multiple reports indicate. Ichiro Suzuki joked that Mariano Rivera broke the bat, with multiple reports attributing the quip to him.
I didn't think Mariano would come out here and break the bat.
The statue was sculpted by Chicago-based Lou Cella, a major media source reports. Ichiro Suzuki wore a jersey from the 2001 season for a photo shoot with the sculptor, according to a major media outlet. Ken Griffey Jr.
and Edgar Martinez helped Ichiro Suzuki pull the curtain off the statue, a major media source states. The Seattle Mariners poked fun at the incident on social media with an 'update' for the Ichiro replica statue giveaway, a major media source reports. Miniaturized Ichiro replica statues were given away at Friday's game against the Houston Astros, according to a major media outlet.
I didn't think Mariano would come out here and break the bat.
Ichiro Suzuki was inducted into the Hall of Fame last summer, a major media source states. Ichiro Suzuki became the third Mariners player to have his jersey retired by the franchise, according to a major media outlet. The bat was fixed shortly after the incident, multiple reports indicate.
However, what specific material or structural flaw caused the bat to break during the unveiling remains unclear. How exactly the bat was fixed, and what repairs were made to the statue, has not been detailed. The total cost of creating and installing the Ichiro Suzuki statue is unknown, and it is not confirmed whether there will be any formal investigation or review into the statue's durability after this incident.
I can say I was happy that I was still able to fit into that uniform, and probably could say Junior and Edgar probably couldn't do that. So, I was happy about that.
To have this moment with them, I look back at how it all started. And it's just been an unbelievable experience.
In the Hall of Fame, I was short one vote. Today, the bat was broke. It kind of lets me know that I'm still not there, that I still need to keep going. So, this is a good example of that.