It wasn’t a home run or diving catch that got Seiya Suzuki trending; it was a close-up of his glove. During a Cubs broadcast, the camera zoomed in on the leather stitched with two brutally honest phrases: “Absolutely catch it,” and “If you make another error, you’ll be fired.” Fans wasted no time in raising queries: Was it a joke? A motivational trick? Or something deeper?
Turns out, those five words weren’t written for show. They were personal. For Suzuki, they’re not just glove graffiti, they’re a wake-up call. After a few defensive errors in the 2024 season, he decided he needed a way to stay locked in. Not just for the highlight plays, but for the routine ones too. And what better way to stay sharp than reminding yourself of failure, every time you look down?
“I had three errors in the outfield last year,” Seiya Suzuki told a sideline reporter. “Over the course of a long season, certain moments you’re not locked in… and that one moment, that can make or break a play. Now I can look down at my glove, kind of gets me locked back in, and hey, so far so good.”
Seiya Suzuki’s glove has two sayings on it:
• Absolutely catch it.
• If you make another error, you’ll be fired. pic.twitter.com/hcgF7UdolD
— Marquee Sports Network (@WatchMarquee) June 14, 2025
That brutal honesty? It’s the heart of Seiya Suzuki’s resurgence. He’s not just playing to avoid errors; he’s playing with the awareness that any lapse, any slip, is unacceptable. The phrase “you’ll be fired” isn’t about fear of losing his job. It’s about holding himself to the standard he believes he must meet. And it’s working.
Suzuki has looked sharper in the field this season, gliding under fly balls with renewed urgency and often flashing the leather on tough plays. The Cubs’ broadcast caught wind of the messages during a game, zooming in as he adjusted his mitt between innings. Social media lit up. Fans were amused, but also impressed: this wasn’t just performance art. It was real, raw motivation, in plain sight.
It’s rare to see an MLB player admit that their mind can wander or that mistakes still haunt them months later. It’s even rarer for them to weaponize that vulnerability into fuel. But Suzuki has always approached the game with a mix of discipline and humor. This glove? It captures both.
So next time a ball rockets toward right field, know this: Seiya Suzuki’s not just reacting with instinct. He’s hearing a voice in his head, his own, firmly reminding him: ‘Absolutely catch it… or you’re fired.’
Why Seiya Suzuki Needed a Wake-Up Call
Right field isn’t supposed to be a pressure cooker, but for Seiya Suzuki in 2024, routine felt anything but difficult. He’s always been steady with the bat, but right field showcased a worrying pattern. By mid-June, he’d already racked up three errors in Chicago’s outfield. Those errors didn’t come in isolation; they popped up during critical moments, and each one chipped away at his presence in the field.
The breaking point came on a soggy June 1 at Wrigley. A standard two‑out, bases‑loaded pop-up slipped silently through his glove, and suddenly four unearned runs were on the board. Talk about a gut punch. Suzuki even redeemed himself with a grand slam later in that same inning, just the kind of mental roller coaster that shouts, “something’s gotta change.” That swing proved he could bounce back, but it also underscored how fleeting confidence can be.
That’s where real discipline kicks in. Seiya Suzuki didn’t just use those errors as talking points; he turned them into guardrails. This isn’t about fear of losing a job; it’s about refusing mental drift. It’s about reminding himself, in plain sight, that he’s accountable, every inning, every catch. That’s not gimmickry. That’s ownership.
The post “You’ll Be Fired” – Seiya Suzuki’s Career Fear Laid Bare as Intriguing Messages Steal Spotlight appeared first on EssentiallySports.
