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Where EAST meets the Northwest
SPRING TRAINING. Chin-lung Hu (left), a shortstop for the Los Angeles Dodgers, fields a ground ball during a Grapefruit League spring training baseball game in Winter Haven, Florida last month. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya) The Chicago Cubs’ Kosuke Fukudome (right) digs toward first after hitting a grounder in a recent spring training game in Mesa, Arizona. (AP Photo/Lenny Ignelzi)
From The Asian Reporter, V18, #15 (April 8, 2008), page 9.
Major league teams invest heavily in Asian markets
By Mike Street
Special to The Asian Reporter
Major League Baseball began holding Opening Day games outside the United States in 1999, with a game in Monterrey, Mexico between the San Diego Padres and the Colorado Rockies. The league wanted to draw on the many Hispanic players on the two teams to drum up foreign interest in the game — and it worked. Since then there have been four more Opening Days held across the border, and this year’s series between the Oakland A’s and the Boston Red Sox marked the third held in Japan. As if this wasn’t enough of a sign that baseball executives want to reach further into Asian markets, 2008 also marked the first time preseason exhibition games were held in China, between the San Diego Padres and Los Angeles Dodgers.
This wider reach is also reflected in the teams themselves. Whereas the 2004 Yankees vs. the Devil Rays series in Japan featured just one Asian star between both teams (Yankee Hideki Matsui), three of the four teams playing in Asia in 2008 had at least one Asian player, and one (Los Angeles) has four at the major-league level.
The trickle of talent that began in 1995 with Hideo Nomo (still in the league with the Kansas City Royals’ minor-league affiliate) and continued with Ichiro Suzuki has now officially become a flood. No fewer than four big-name Japanese players, and one American-born manager who proved himself in Japan, signed contracts with major-league teams this winter. For several teams, this represented their first real forays into the import market, while others extended their already long reach into Japanese rosters.
Los Angeles leads the way with a long-established commitment to hiring Asians both on the field and in their front office. They began it all by signing Nomo and now offer not only South Korean star Chan Ho Park and top-notch closer Takashi Saito, but also Chin-lung Hu, their Minor League Player of the Year and MVP of last year’s All-Star Futures Game. The Taiwanese Hu is a defensive whiz, a good contact hitter, and the heir apparent to Rafael Furcal at shortstop. Until Furcal leaves, Hu will bide his time as the Dodgers’ utility infielder, filling in for third baseman Andy LaRoche or second baseman Jeff Kent, either of whom may not be recovered from their injuries by Opening Day.
Along with Hu, the Dodgers outbid Seattle and several other teams for pitcher Hiroki Kuroda, their latest import from Japan. Kuroda, ace starter for the Hiroshi Toyo Carp, offers a strong array of pitches and a big-game mentality that will work well in the Dodgers’ pitcher-friendly Chavez Ravine ballpark. He will be the team’s number-four starter, a role in which he should shine.
Another big offseason Japanese import was Kosuke Fukudome, acquired by the Chicago Cubs. The Cubs have not had a strong Asian presence before, as their only other Asian players, Koreans Hee-seop Choi and Jae-kuk Ryu, never worked out. But Fukudome is a solidly established player, while Choi and Ryu needed more nurturing than Chicago could offer.
Fukudome won two batting titles with the Chunichi Dragons, and his power manifested itself more in doubles than homers. He should be a hitter in the model of Hideki Matsui: good batting average, decent power, and an ability for clutch situational hitting. Though he played center for Chunichi, he will patrol right field for Chicago, and the change in positions and leagues should mean an early adjustment period — Matsui also struggled in his first season — but Fukudome should turn out to be well worth the $48 million Chicago shelled out for four years of his services.
In addition to giving Nomo a second chance, Kansas City brought in two other Japanese imports, one at manager and the other on the mound. In a refreshing departure from the typical method of recycling former major league managers, Kansas City hired Trey Hillman, who brought the Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters to two Japan Series finals, winning one, in his five-year tenure. Nippon had been cellar-dwellers when Hillman arrived, and they won the 2007 championship despite having the weakest offense in the league. That may portend well for the Royals, who offer a similar anemic offense and a losing tradition.
The other half of Kansas City’s dip into the Asian market is Yasuhiko Yabuta, a very strong reliever for the Chiba Lotte Marines. Yabuta’s potent combination of a fastball and forkball led to dominance in Japan, helping the Marines win a championship in 2005. Both because he is a reliever — relievers have shown a greater adaptability to American baseball than starters or position players — and has a manager with Japanese experience, Yabuta should be a very strong, if underappreciated, setup man for the Royals.
The Cleveland Indians, one game away from last year’s World Series, needed strength in their bullpen, and they, too, looked to Chiba Lotte for help. They brought over Masahide Kobayashi, a devastating Marines closer for 10 years and the first player in Japanese baseball history to record seven consecutive 20-save seasons. Like Yabuta, Kobayashi is an older player, which means both maturity and a short career path; he should also be dominant early on, and will be one of the league’s top setup men. Unlike Yabuta, Kobayashi should be performing for a contending team, and thus will face more pressure.
Baseball is becoming more international every year, and this season’s crop of Japanese players represents the biggest year ever for Asian imports. There’s more reason than ever for Asian sports fans to turn to major league games; the hardest choice may be which game to watch.