Visit to the U.S. convinced Hasegawa to stay and pitch

By Larry LaRue

The News Tribune

PEORIA, Ariz. – The first American sunset Shigetoshi Hasegawa saw convinced him major league baseball was worth a look.

It was the offseason for the Japanese pitcher, and he was staying with Jim Colburn, a former big league pitcher who’d been a coach in Japan.

“He had a beach house in California,” Hasegawa said. “I liked it. I got to see a little of American life. I liked it, too.”

These were in the dark days before Ichiro – before most American baseball fans knew just what to make of the Dodgers Rookie of the Year, Hideo Nomo.

“I was never a star in Japan, not like Nomo or Ichiro, but I knew I could pitch,” Hasegawa said.

Now, five years later, Mariners fans have at least a passing awareness of Hasegawa, a right-handed starter turned reliever whose sense of humor might be as effective in a clubhouse as his pitches are on a mound.

When he came to major league baseball in 1997, he brought with him a pre-Ichiro press contingent, and if Hasegawa spoke little English, those who followed him had no real knowledge of big league etiquette.

“That first year, I came out of a game and was sitting in the dugout, and a Japanese photographer ran into the dugout to get a picture,” Hasegawa said.

“A moment later, they were all there. It was crazy. I told them if they did it again, I wouldn’t talk to them.”

They didn’t do it again, and Hasegawa has rarely been silent since.

He learned the English language quickly, and learned it so well he later co-wrote a book for Japanese readers on how to speak it. It was more than a how-to book.

“One of the reasons Japanese don’t speak the language is historical,” Hasegawa said. “A lot of people can’t get past the fact that we lost a war to you.”

An outgoing man in Japan, Hasegawa’s first season in the majors was a lonely, problematic experience. No teammate spoke his language and his English was a long way from conversational.

“I thought American players were like robots, they came to the ballpark, did their work, played the game and went home,” he said. “I didn’t talk to anyone much until my second season – when I could speak English.”

That first season, Hasegawa watched with envy as Latino players and American athletes hung together in the clubhouse, talking in small groups.

“I thought it was a dream that someday all clubs might have two or three Japanese players,” Hasegawa said. “Now I’m on one.”

Hasegawa, Ichiro and Kazuhiro Sasaki have all known each other for years.

They talk, and they have much in common – including the Japanese media.

“I love to talk,” Hasegawa said, “especially about baseball. But the Japanese media occasionally goes to far. They want to know where Shige shops, what his blood type is … “

This season, the Mariners want Hasegawa to fill the role of Jose Paniagua, a middle reliever who can eat innings and get the game to Sasaki, Arthur Rhodes and Jeff Nelson. And when the year ends, if he visits Japan, it will be just that. A visit.

“I go home to Japan now to visit family or do business,” he said. “If I’m going to vacation, I go to California.”

Getting ready: Left-hander Ryan Anderson will throw in the bullpen today for just the second time this spring, testing his surgically repaired shoulder. Since the first day of camp, Anderson hadn’t been allowed to throw from a mound, though he’s taken part in all other drills, while doing specific exercises to strengthen the back of his left shoulder. The Mariners say if Anderson pitches in spring games, it won’t be until mid or late March.

Aches and pains: Players work out all off season, but that doesn’t mean they’re not sore after a few days of work at spring training. “If someone tells you they’re feeling great right now, they’re doing something illegal,” Ken Cloude said. Edgar Martinez, for instance, ran on a treadmill all winter. Two days in running on grass, he needed a quick massage to get his quads loose Friday. “It’s a different surface, different shoes, different impact,” Martinez said. “Everybody gets sore first few days.”

Ah, rookies: When pitcher Matt Jarvis dropped his glove on the playing field before the workout began, he left it in an area where the players run – against the rules. Before he could retrieve it, veteran Arthur Rhodes had kicked it over a fence.

Quote of the Day: Sound advice from minor league pitching coach Pat Rice: “Never pet a burning dog.”