If Ichiro is viewed as selfish, it is because he approaches the game as a professional --- all about business. I saw an article a couple of days ago wherein former Mariner, J.J. Putz described himself as a "prankster", with his creme pies and such. Perhaps if he worked harder on his game and developed a winning attitude, he would less time for antics. Baseball, pays player exorbitant salaries to perform and win. Throwing pies is for clowns. If J.J. wants to continue to do so, let him join the circus. He will be a hit, but his salary might take a bit of one as well. I recall that at one time when they really were feared and intimidated virtually everyone, the New York Yankees had a small sandwich board just outside of their dugout that read "Men At Work". Look at the attitudes and manner of dress with the players of today; slovenly dressed with shirttails barely in, pantcuffs all the way down like an old pair of jeans, pine tar everywhere, including obliterating the logos on batting helmets. Sure Ichiro is different; he approaches the game with a certain dignity and class. I, for one, appreciate that. His helmet is shiny, his pants at just the proper length, with the socks showing (look at how many others are that way --- NOT many), his hair trimmed neatly. The majority of the players today look like bums. To paraphrase what General George S. Patton once said. "They don't look like a ballteam, they don't dress like a ballteam, why should they act like a ballteam"? Ted Williams approached as a professional --- he studied the game and played for perfection. He was serious when he was in the Boston outfield. Later "That's Manny being Manny" Ramirez comes along, plays in the same outfield and behaves like a moron and we make light of it. The question to the owners is why pay these guys as ballplayers? Pay them circus salaries. We should demand more, MUCH MORE, of our professional ballplayers. Fans --- don't attend games where clowns are paid ballplayer wages for circus antics !

I think he is in the mold of some of the other great hitters in baseball both on and off the field:

Rod Carew, Ty Cobb, Rogers Hornsby, Pete Rose, Stan Musial, Ted Williams, Bill Terry, Joe Jackson and Wade Boggs.

These guys hit and played ball. Off the field they weren't sterling examples of people but on the field they were all gamers. They didn't always give interviews and when they did, they talked about what they knew best -- hitting. Not the best subject for an article especially today with all the emphasis on the long ball or a fast ball that blew a batter away.

Ichiro gets on base. He isn't paid to drive in runs. Others are paid to drive him him. If he gets on base 33 to 37 percent of the time over the course of a season, drives the pitchers to crazy when he is on base, plays solid defense out in the field, what else is he supposed to do? Hang around with people he doesn't have much else in common with?

Ichiro is a lot like Edgar Martinez, a professional who quietly does everything he can to make himself the best ball player he can be. I remember when major league baseball let him put his first name on the back of his shirt because they were so sure that he wouldn't last long enough for it to matter. They thought he was too short and too thin to hit major league pitching. Then he went out and set a rookie record for hits, and has continued to be one of the top players in the league. I don't think the motive in complaining about him is jealousy, exactly--more like embarassment. He has shown up a lot of players who are bigger and stronger and probably ought to be able to out-perform him.