For professional sports teams, being prepared for the future can often be as important as being ready for the present. Without a constantly renewing cycle of young players, it can be very difficult for a professional sports team to stay at the top. Also, with amateur drafts gathering more attention every year, the role of […]
OBITUARY: Cappy Harada
July 15, 2010 by Leave a Comment
SANTA MARIA, Calif. — Tsuneo Paul Harada, affectionately known as Cappy Harada, passed away on June 5, 2010. The Santa Maria native was 88. He was born Oct. 16, 1921. He is preceded in death by his loving wife, Kay Harada. He is survived by his son and daughter-in-law, Alex and Etsuko Harada; his son, […]
Overall, Nikkei subpar at All-Star break First half marked by struggles, career lows
July 15, 2010 by Leave a Comment
Now that the Major League Baseball season has reached the All-Star break, it is a good time to look back on how the Nikkei players have done so far. In the Bay Area, Travis Ishikawa and Kurt Suzuki have had fairly successful seasons for the Giants and A’s, respectively. Ishikawa, a first baseman born in […]
YAKYU BY THE NUMBERS: Good-bye Gotham, Hello LaLaLand
December 17, 2009 by Leave a Comment
Hideki Matsui and his World Series MVP trophy have left the Big Apple for the City of Angels to become, well, an Angel. The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim signed Matsui to a one-year deal worth a reported $6.5 million, quite a pay cut from the $s13 million he made in 2009 when he hit […]
YAKYU BY THE NUMBERS: Wakamatsu Ties for Fourth in AL Manager Award
November 19, 2009 by Leave a Comment
The odds were against Don Wakamatsu before the voting even began. Despite leading the Mariners to a 24-game turnaround in 2009, the Seattle manager really had little chance of winning the AL Manager of the Year Award. In the 27-year history of the award only four managers of teams that didn’t make the playoffs won […]
YAKYU BY THE NUMBERS: World Series MVP Matsui Might Still Have Future with Yankees
November 12, 2009 by Leave a Comment
In films, the flame-throwing Godzilla never went quietly into the night. He went out swinging — and, many think, so has his namesake Hideki Matsui. In what many believe might be his last game in the Yankee pinstripes, Matsui went 3-for-4 with six RBIs in the clinching game of the World Series. He hit .618 […]
YAKYU BY THE NUMBERS: So Long to the States: Yakyu Vets Say Sayonara
November 5, 2009 by Leave a Comment
Japan has lost some of its best players to the United States over the years, including Ichiro Suzuki, Hideki Matsui and Daisuke Matsuzaka. In 2009, no less than 18 Japanese players, which is perhaps the largest number ever, took the field in major leagues. However, in what might be a reversal of fortune, at least […]
Jojima Opts Out of Contract
October 22, 2009 by Leave a Comment
SEATTLE (Kyodo) — Seattle Mariners catcher Kenji Jojima is opting out of the final two years of his three-year, $24 million contract and will return to Japanese baseball, the club said Oct. 19. Jojima, the only Japanese-born catcher who has played in the major leagues, has decided to exercise the opt-out clause in his contract […]
YAKYU BY THE NUMBERS: Wakamatsu Has Shot for AL Manager of the Year
September 24, 2009 by Leave a Comment
Some people around baseball might think that Don Wakamatsu puts David Copperfield and Harry Houdini to shame as far as magicians go. After all, he must be using smoke and mirrors — as well as pulling a few rabbits out of his cap — to get a team that finished with the worst record in […]
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