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Unanimity: Ichiro and the crime of a single vote The concept of unanimous can be as informal or as literal as you like.
Either: Everyone thought that was cool .
Or: Every single voter for baseballs highest honor thought you were worthy .
There are levels to the same sentiment.
Ichiro Suzuki, a wizard of sport and style, nearly cleared both yesterday.
Instead, one single voter who remains unknown at this juncture left one of baseballs most accomplished players off their Hall of Fame ballot.
Its ultimately not a major tragedy, but its still a shame.
Heres the full class, which was announced yesterday : Ichiro, CC Sabathia and Billy Wagner.
Thats it.
Lets sidebar on the pitchers before getting back to Ichiro: Back to Ichiro, who was simply a marvel for literal decades.
He was absolutely worthy of becoming the second unanimous Hall of Famer (joining Mariano Rivera).
Consider: Jayson Stark had plenty of thoughts on this class, but it was his preview of the upcoming Induction Day and the 2026 class that got me excited.
Read his excellent notebook here .
Ichiro forever.
Found Treasure: You have a choice You know whos already on a Hall of Fame track after one season? Pirates pitching sensation Paul Skenes.
Its early, but if he can maintain health and velocity, theres no reason to think he wont make it to Cooperstown at some point.
Which is why a one-of-one edition of his Topps rookie card, unearthed by an 11-year-old collector yesterday , is such a big deal.
The card is enormously valuable, and The Athletic s Larry Holder told me it could fetch $1 million at an auction.
The kid could take that, or accept this offer from the Pirates: Skenes girlfriend, the LSU gymnast and social media star Livvy Dunne, also said she would offer her suite to the cardholder if they took the Pirates offer.
Before I make a choice, I want to hear from you, and thus we arrive at our next Pulse Poll.
Do you: Make your voice heard here .
Well share the results tomorrow.
Butler trade imminent? The Phoenix Suns appear to be gearing up to trade for disgruntled Heat star Jimmy Butler, sources told The Athletic last night.
The Suns executed a picks-only deal last night with the Utah Jazz, which netted them three first-rounders in return, a clear sign Phoenix is amassing trade assets.
The only thing in the way for now: Bradley Beal and his no-trade clause.
Full report here .
Also, Butler was not very conspicuous last night with his Suns-themed shoes .
Advertisement A record transfer USWNT and NWSL star Naomi Girma is expected to join Chelsea after the Womens Super League club agreed to a $1 million transfer fee with the San Diego Wave, the first time a womans fee has reached seven digits.
The 24-year-old Girma is plenty worth it , and Chelsea was not the only European club willing to set the record for her services.
See more on the deal here .
McDaniels returning to Pats So much for everything being new in New England under Mike Vrabel, who hired familiar face Josh McDaniels yesterday to be the Patriots offensive coordinator.
It will be McDaniels third stint as Pats OC, and to be fair, he has been excellent in that role.
His times as a head coach have proven less successful.
In other coaching news: The Vikings agreed to a contract extension with coach Kevin OConnell.
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One Last Thing: We got another Ohio State golf cart meme Deep in the annals of Buckeye internet lore, the golf cart is maligned.
If you were online around 2013, you probably remember seeing former Ohio State coach Urban Meyer, seated on a golf cart, sadly eating pizza after his Buckeyes lost the Big Ten title game to Michigan State in a major upset: Eating cold pizza in the bowels of Lucas Oil Stadium while seated on a golf cart: No one's idea of fun.
pic.twitter.com/HMSSXLnDDr Pat Brennan (@PBrennanENQ) December 8, 2013 The golf cart now exists at the opposite end of the emotional spectrum, too.
Heres current coach Ryan Day and company on a golf cart after Mondays national title win: Some lady just crashed the golf cart carrying Ryan Day and Will Howard in the Mercedes-Benz tunnel after they won the National Championship pic.twitter.com/o3UqM5ZhrO Patrick Greenfield (@PCGreenfield) January 21, 2025 Everyone was OK, thankfully.
Maybe the Buckeyes should find other transportation during the next Playoff trip.
They laughed it off afterward .
Also from the game: Bruce Feldman spoke to Ryan Days family about what the last six weeks have been like, with the Ohio State coach going from pariah to legend.
It was enlightening.
Read that here .
Soccer: Manchester City at Paris Saint-Germain 3 p.m.
ET on Paramount+ Its a soccer day today.
Heres the pick from the Champions League slate, though these two big-name teams are far down the CL table .
But these are still major talkers, with Erling Haalands massive contract and PSGs post-Mbappe wallow.
And yet this could essentially be an elimination match .
Soccer: USMNT vs.
Costa Rica 7 p.m.
ET on TNT/Max/Peacock The Americans are thriving both at home and abroad right now, and theyll look to go 2-0 in 2025 here.
Expect plenty of newer faces here, as most of the teams stars are competing in club soccer at the moment.
Get tickets to games like these here .
Marcus Thompson joined NBA Daily to discuss the title pressure on the Thunder.
Listen on Apple and Spotify .
Today is Jan.
22 , a date which somehow includes a bonanza of NBA highlights .
Lets hope tonights slate adds to the total.
Today is also the five-year anniversary of Zion Williamsons debut, which feels strange.
Christian Clark and Will Guillory, our two writers who know Williamson best, tried to sort through the stars up-and-down career and plot out whats next.
Read that here .
Last on the basketball front: Free agency is officially underway in the WNBA , and Sabreena Merchant predicted where all the big names land .
Gabby Herzig penned a strong column about Justin Thomas plea to his fellow players: There should be no disagreement with Thomas request .
I loved Richard Deitschs review of Nick Sabans excellent first year on TV .
Everyone listens to Nick.
Most-clicked in the newsletter yesterday : Stewart Mandels way-too-early college football Top 25 for next year.
Lovely team sitting there at No.
4.
Most-read on the website yesterday : Rustin Dodd wrote about Andy Reids all-important 35 notecard .
So good.
(Top photo: Otto Greule Jr.
/ Getty Images).
This article has been shared from the original article on theathleticuk, here is the link to the original article:
https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6079653/2025/01/22/ichiro-suzuki-hall-of-fame-the-pulse/