Tak Deserves to Be in the Hall

At the end of this month, baseball will focus on Cooperstown, New York, to watch the induction of the class of 2025. Five deserving retired athletes will join the limited fraternity of inductees. CC Sabathia is the one I watched most often, but Ichiro Suzuki is the one whose entry into the Hall intrigues me.

I was surprised to learn that Suzuki will be the first Japanese player named to the Hall of Fame. I figured that there would have been someone else – perhaps Hideo Nomo, probably not Hideki Matsui, maybe someone I’ve forgotten as I’ve wandered away from the game. But no, 10 time all-star Suzuki, who joined the major leagues in 2001 (after nearly a decade in a Japanese league), is the first.

That got me to thinking about the Bass Fishing Hall of Fame, an institution which is close to my heart. I’ve volunteered my time to the Hall since 2018 and look forward to our annual induction ceremony. It’ll take place this September, and three worthy gentlemen will be added to the roll, including Craig Lamb, one of my mentors.

I remain surprised, however, that Takahiro Omori has yet to be elected. Maybe I’m biased because I enjoy Japanese fishing culture, or because the first Classic I covered was the one that he won. Not only was he the first international Classic winner, beating the second by nearly two decades, but he joined the tour at a time when it wasn’t easy to be a non-English speaker. It’s still tough, but there are better support systems in place for the Shin Fukaes and Taku Itos of the world. In addition to the Classic win, Tak has won six more BASS Events, spanning 22 years, on a wide range of fisheries. He also won an FLW tournament on Lake Martin and has qualified for four Redcrests, finishing in the top ten twice. His fishing accomplishments would bring anyone close, but his international stature brings him over the top. Of course, I don’t have a vote in the matter, so I just have to sit by and trust the judgment of those who do.

And while Omori is no longer affiliated with Yamamoto, he was for many years. Indeed, company founder was a big early supporter of his, as well as of many other pros from Japan. While Tak’s accomplishments on the water are his own, his election would be a feather in the cap of companies like Yamamoto and SDG who’ve made the Japanese would-be Hall of Famers’ path a little easier.