Ichiro Leaves, Untouched by Launch-Angle Types

3/22/2019

Master craftsman at work

Two thoughts about Ichiro Suzuki, who just retired:

1. I can only speculate what would happen today if a player with similar skills arrived from Japan to the so-called Major Leagues. He might be turned over to the analytics types in their bat cave, who would "suggest" he could have more “pop” if only he had a better “launch arc.”

The numbers guy might see him produce long balls in batting practice – which he could do, any time – and insist he do the same during games.

The analytics crowd is currently retrofitting the new generation of hitters. I see how the Mets are doing their best to minimize Jeff McNeil, a late bloomer who made 74 hits and batted .329 in his debut last season, making him scramble for a utility job in the outfield.
https://www.baseball-reference.com/register/player.fcgi?id=mcneil000jef

Of course, Ichiro arrived in Seattle with the statistics of the greatest hit-producer in Japanese history. He also had the martial discipline of Sadaharu Oh, the greatest home-run producer in baseball history, who took time out to swing a Samurai sword to help him with his home-run cut.
https://www.baseball-reference.com/register/player.fcgi?id=oh----000sad

Ichiro and Oh could do that because they had the security of a culture that prizes ritual and history.

Ichiro arrived in North America with his climate-control bat case and his pre-game snack of a rice ball. He was going to do things his way, and he had the advantage of a Japanese ownership with the Mariners. Nobody messed with him. He was already a force.

But young American hitters are hearing the “wisdom” of the age that is turning Major League Baseball into a dreary home-run derby, hard to watch, with players trudging impassively back from home plate with the secure knowledge they took their launch-angle cut, on orders from on high.

2. Ichiro was a force of his own, who would not have won a popularity contest in the clubhouse or the press box. He got along well with Ken Griffey, who traveled to Tokyo for Ichiro’s farewell -- superstars bonding via their respect for the game.
However, teammates noticed he never dived for a ball in the outfield and noticed his special care and handling in the clubhouse. He could speak street English in the dugout but maintained a reserve through an interpreter with reporters and other outsiders.

From the book "Life from the Press Box" by long-time Mariners beat reporter Jim Street:

“From the day Ichiro arrived from Japan, to the day I retired, he was exceedingly rude to American reporters, whether giving snide answers to good questions or making fun of ---‘s girth. I had one Japanese reporter tell me, ‘If you think he’s rude to you guys, he treats us even worse.’”

That said, Ichiro was a spectacle, to be observed and respected as one of a kind. His arm, his glove, his calculated speed on the base paths, his batting-practice homers and his gametime singles made him a legend.

Fans around the world got to see him excel at the highest level. And the launch-crowd types never got to mess with his swing. There’s that.
Three stories about Ichiro:

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/20/sports/mariners-as-mlb-opener-japan.html

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/21/sports/ichiro-suzuki-retires.html

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/21/sports/ichiro-suzuki-hit-total.html?module=inline

Chris Vecsey

3/22/2019 12:49:07 pm

Sometimes those of us who see a self-created work of art, like the ballplayer Ichiro, can appreciate without distraction what we see on the field (or on tv) with no concern about his personality in the clubhouse. All praise for this hitting wonder, now retired from our view.

George Vecsey

3/22/2019 02:33:22 pm

Chris, you have heard my stories about one-time encounters with singers you and I admire.
"No man is a hero to his valet."
That's what scribes like me are -- valets to great people.
But...the guy in Seattle saw him 162xMany seasons.
You saw Ichiro hit to left field -- and throw to the right base.
Quite good enough. Thanks, G

bruce

3/22/2019 11:48:34 pm

george,

i arrived in japan april 16,1993.

the 130 game season was just underway.

they do like tradition in japan which is why, i was told, ichiro didn't play much his in his first two seasons.

wouldn't change the way he hit.

matsui (gojira) was more a traditional japanese and was revered more than ichiro until ichiro hit the bigs. used to see his puss all over the place tho ichiro certainly made a few yen in endorsements too.

i saw them interviewed together on japanese tv. they were in different leagues so rarely played against each other. matsui played in the central league which was considered the better circuit. giants were japan's team with fans all over the country. every one of their games were televised.

orix, ichiro's team, not so much.

mieko translated the piece for me.

they were interviewed separately after. she told me ichiro said matsui didn't say much. matsui said ichiro had strong opinions--unusual to voice them so openly.

i knew ichiro spoke english well because you could see him chatting with opponents and teammates. i was pretty sure he wasn't speaking spanish..

i would hazard a guess that the reasons he used an interpreter were two fold......wanted some extra time to think and might've been afraid not to be perfect.

the final paragraph is from the WAPO. i've mentioned koshien might be my favourite sporting event. it's held twice a year and every game is televised--or was when i was there.

matzusaka was a super star in high school. he played for yokohama.

i watched the games mentioned in the piece. the first game was against pl kakuen from osaka. a baseball power. tied 3-3 after nine innings and, if memory serves, both teams scored three runs in the 12th.

and, again if memory serves, matzusaaka came back in relief the next day to win it before the final. pitched three days in a row and probably three 400 pitches.

from the WAPO

......Sadaharu Oh, Yu Darvish and Suzuki all played in the tournament, with Suzuki even pitching. Daisuke Matzusaka once threw 250 pitches in a 17-inning game, then tossed a no-hitter just two days later in the final. The Japanese also won the first two World Baseball Classics, with Suzuki driving in the winning run in the 2009 championship game against South Korea....

bruce

bruce

3/23/2019 05:20:51 pm

george,

you've probably figgered out that three was supposed to be threw.

i wouldn't be surprised if he actually threw more than 400 in pitching two complete games and relieving in the semi final.

bruce

Comments are closed.

QUOTES
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As I write this, I’m in a deserted newsroom in The Times’s D.C. office. After working at home for two years during Covid, I was elated to get back, so I could wander around and pick up the latest scoop.
But in the last year, there has been only a smattering of people whenever I’m here, with row upon row of empty desks. Sometimes a larger group gets lured in for a meeting with a platter of bagels."

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***
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Ichiro Leaves, Untouched by Launch-Angle Types

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