Ichiro Suzuki moved within three hits of his 3,000th Major League Baseball hit on Tuesday with a one-for-five performance at the plate in the Miami Marlins' 5-0 win over the Philadelphia Phillies. The 42-year-old Marlins outfielder had already etched a piece of baseball history in June, when he took his total of professional hits past Pete Rose's fabled record of 4,256 -- more than 1,000 of which came while playing in Japan. Ichiro, one of a few global sports icons predominantly known by his first name, sparked joy back home in Japan after overtaking Rose's total -- although some in the US, including Rose himself, have downplayed the achievement.
