This week, Suzuki returned to his hometown of Tokyo, representing the Cubs in his fourth MLB season. “My goal is to stay in this league and play for as long as I can, until my body stops working,” Suzuki said. “Here [in MLB] it’s so hard with age, but also, whenever your performance drops, there’s always that next guy up.”

Suzuki was showered with applause in his return to Japan as a member of the Chicago Cubs, but it was the Hanshin Tigers who came out on top in the exhibition game.