Ichiro went 2-for-4 against Tanaka to help lead the Marlins to a 2-1 victory against the Yankees.
"Just got to kind of tip your hat to him," said Tanaka. "He got two hits off of me. Just have to tip your hat to his good batting."
The two Japanese legends were teammates on the Yankees last season, which was Tanaka's first in the Majors. According to the righty, the only time they had ever squared off on the field was during training camp before the 2009 World Baseball Classic.
On Monday night, Suzuki lined a single to right field off a 93-mph hour fastball in the first inning for a clean single.