2010 in Review: Ichiro

Over the next couple of months, we at SoDo Mojo will be posting seasonal reviews for every player that we deem worthy of one (yay, regular content!). Enjoy!

Offense: It’s hard to keep coming up with new ways to compliment Ichiro. It’s not like we’re ever surprised when he has yet another great season – that’s just Ichiro, and that’s what we’ve come to expect from him. 2010 was just another year of Ichiro being Ichiro – he didn’t miss a game, he racked up over 200 hits for the 10th consecutive season, he hit over .300, and he stole a whole bunch of bases. He managed to avoid his normal May struggles this time around, posting above average numbers in every month but July. Granted, his offense wasn’t quite as good as it was in 2009, but I’d be lying if I told you he’d shown any clear-cut signs of slowing down.

Defense: While 2010 wasn’t one of Ichiro’s better years at the plate, it was his best defensive season since 2006. He posted a 15.1 UZR, good for 5th best among outfielder. Most of that number came from range, though, as it was actually a down year for Ichiro’s arm – I never would have guessed.

Outlook: I fully expect more of the same from Ichiro in 2011, and you should too – after all, he hasn’t given us any reason to doubt him. And please, don’t take the shortness of this post as a lack of appreciation – it’s exactly the opposite. He’s been so good, for so long, that excellent seasons just don’t come as anything new.