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Ichiro Suzuki of the Seattle Mariners is used to slow starts. After all, the Japanese superstar went just 19-for-108 in the month of April for a batting average of .287. While that would be considered pretty good for most players, that doesn't even come close to what Ichiro is used to hitting.

Yet no one who watches the Mariners on a consistent basis could ever doubt that Ichiro would eventually come around. That's because we're talking about a man who has an incredible .335 career batting average through his first five-plus seasons in the Majors. So it wasn't any surprise when Ichiro finally started getting in the groove in May. During that month, he was 46-for-124 for an average of .371. He also had four triples in May, stole nine bases without being thrown out, and drove in seven runners.

What might be surprising to some fans, however, is the fact that Ichiro has been able to sustain his hot streak for so long. Anyone who has ever stood in the batter's box facing down a major league pitcher will tell you that hitting a baseball is one of the most difficult tasks in all of sports. That's why a .300 batting average, which is really just a 30 percent success rate, is considered excellent, and why a .400 batting average, or 40 percent success rate, is considered the Holy Grail of hitting.

So it's worth noting that Ichiro is currently in the midst of a 20-game hitting streak, which is the longest such streak in the Majors so far this season. Previously this season, Ichiro also had an 18-game hitting streak. That just goes to show you that Ichiro is really on his game right now.

Overall on the season, Ichiro is batting .365, which, incredibly, isn't even tops in the American League. Catcher Joe Mauer of the Minnesota Twins leads the league with his .377 average. However, Ichiro has 114 hits while Mauer only has 89, which is quite a big difference. In addition, Ichiro has scored 58 runs for the Mariners while Mauer has crossed the plate just 37 times for the Twins.

In past years, Ichiro's personal achievements haven't meant much for the bigger picture of the Seattle Mariners' season. The team has been so bad that they haven't been in contention for a playoff spot in years. But this season is different. Even though the Mariners are a game below .500 with a record of 36-37, they sit just 3.5 games behind the Oakland A's in the American League West. With more than half a season left to play, the Mariners could very well make a playoff push this year. That means the team needs Ichiro to continue putting hits on the board, getting on base, and making things happen early in the ballgame.

The Mariners as a team are on a hot streak right now. They've won five games in a row, and seven of their last 10. This means that Ichiro can benefit from the team as much as the team can benefit from Ichiro. When the rest of the batters in the lineup are hitting the ball and being productive, it helps Ichiro's chances of getting good pitches to look at. He'll get more plate appearances each game, pitcher's will have to throw to him, and he'll have more opportunities to extend his hitting streak.

Of course, I'm writing all of this strictly from a fan's perspective. Most major league baseball players will tell you that they don't pay attention to personal records and streaks, and I have to believe that this is the case with Ichiro as well. But as a longtime fan, it's nice to see Ichiro's efforts finally paying off for him both personally and in terms of being on a team that has a chance of making it to the postseason.

So now whenever I tune into a Mariners game, I'll have several things to cheer about. First, I'll be rooting for Ichiro to get a hit each and every time he comes up to the plate in the hopes that he can keep pushing his hitting streak farther and farther along. And now I'll also be pulling for the entire Mariners team to keep winning games and to overtake the A's for the division lead.