That’s why when Ichiro Suzuki broke out a zinger about the Marlins during his Baseball Hall of Fame induction speech on Sunday — which the Japanese legend delivered entirely in English — he was not as quick to laugh as the rest of the crowd in Cooperstown.

Ichiro Suzuki, a remarkable hitter with dazzling speed and arm strength, not only broke stereotypes during a career played across two continents but also blazed a trail for a generation of Japanese-born players in Major League Baseball.

Mixing sneaky humor with heartfelt messages, the first Japanese-born player to be inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame stole the show in Cooperstown.