Ichiro Suzuki had two hits on Wednesday night, giving him 4,257 spanning the Japanese and North American Major Leagues, surpassing Pete Rose's record total in Major League Baseball.

Rose said earlier this week that he didn't consider Suzuki's totals an equal.

"It sounds like in Japan they're trying to make me the Hit Queen," Rose told USA Today Sports. "I'm not trying to take anything away from Ichiro -- he's had a Hall of Fame career -- but the next thing you know, they'll be counting his high school hits.

"I don't think you're going to find anybody with credibility say that Japanese baseball is equivalent to Major League Baseball. There are too many guys that fail here and then become household names there, like Tuffy Rhodes. How can he not do anything here and hit [a record-tying] 55 home runs [in 2001] over there? It has something to do with the caliber of personnel."

Suzuki had 1,278 hits for the Orix Buffaloes in Japan's Pacific League, from 1992 to 2000, and the rest with the Seattle Mariners, New York Yankees and Miami Marlins.

"Obviously, I've heard of Pete Rose's comments, and he wasn't happy about what they are saying about this record," Suzuki said. "To be honest, this wasn't something that I was a making out as a goal. It was just kind of a weird situation to be in because of the combined total."