The Japan Series of baseball

The Kansas City Star has detailed coverage of the Japan Series of baseball.



The Chunichi Dragons celebrate their recent win in the 2007 Japan Series.


—Mellow Monk

Go to the Mellow Monk tea page
Subscribe to the blog feed (RSS)

Share |

Deciphering Ichiro's bizarre comments

No, Ichiro's not going crazy. He's just opening up a little—and engaging in obfuscation that is a lot more clever than a lot of folks realize.

Cultural differences are also at work. Athletes in Japan aren't subject to the constant barrage of questions like they are in the States—and the questions they are asked aren't nearly as personal as the questions American reporters ask. (Such as, "How did you feel when you signed that $50 million contract?")

The Japanese tend to be very personal people who are uncomfortable discussing their feelings or personal details of their lives with strangers. So Ichiro's goofy statements may just be a way to avoid talking about something he's not ready to share with the entire world. And it's more polite—at least in Japan—than saying, "I'd rather not talk about that."



At a press conference, Ichiro revealed that his dog Ikky played a role in the slugger's decision to stay in Seattle: "He said, 'Woof, woof, woof,' which meant, 'Stay, stay, stay,' " Suzuki told reporters in Japanese. "Of course, I listened." I am not making this up.


—Mellow Monk

Go to the Mellow Monk tea page
Bookmark this blog
Subscribe to the blog feed (RSS)

Share |

Matsuzaka's gyroball debunked

Sports Illustrated's Tom "Mythbuster" Verducci says that the so-called "gyroball" allegedly thrown by Japanese pitcher Daisuke Matsuzaka is not a new pitch but just a wicked changeup.



"I had y'all fooled though, didn't I."


—Mellow Monk

Go to the Mellow Monk tea page
Bookmark this blog
Subscribe to the blog feed (RSS)

Share |

Matsuzaka's gyroball: myth or reality?

The Red Sox have paid a lot of money for pitching sensation Daisuke Matsuzaka. What they're hoping to get is his "ghost pitch," also known as the gyroball, supposedly the first new pitch in the major leagues since the split-fingered fastball, adopted about 30 years ago.

But a lot of pundits are wondering if the gyroball is even real.



The alleged "gyroball" explained.


—Mellow Monk

Go to the Mellow Monk tea page
Bookmark this blog
Subscribe to the blog feed (RSS)

Share |

Red Sox pony up $50M for Matsuzaka

The other day I reported that the winning American bid for Japanese pitching sensation Daisuke Matsuzaka was in the $30 million range, but those rumors were off by about $20 million. The Red Sox will pay his current team $50 million—and that's just for negotiation rights.



"So, how much per pitch does that come out to?"


—Mellow Monk

Go to the Mellow Monk tea page
Bookmark this blog
Subscribe to the blog feed (RSS)

Share |

Japan's ghost pitcher to come to U.S.

Daisuke Matsuzaka is one of Japan's hottest baseball pitchers. He throws a pitch known as the gyroball, also known as the "ghost pitch," which is said to be the first new pitch in baseball since the split-fingered fastball.

Tonight or tomorrow, he'll announce which U.S. team he'll be playing for. The winning bid is reportedly in the $30 million range.





—Mellow Monk

Go to the Mellow Monk tea page
Bookmark this blog
Subscribe to the blog feed (RSS)

Share |

What happens to retired sumo wrestlers

Ever wonder what happens to retired sumo wresters? Well, the video below shows Royce Gracie taking on a retired Akebono, Hawaiian-born Chad Rowan, who became Japanese sumo's first-ever foreign grand champion (yokozuna) in 1993. He last wrestled as a rikishi in 2000, retired in 2001, and left sumo entirely in 2003.





—Mellow Monk

Go to the Mellow Monk tea page
Bookmark this blog
Subscribe to the blog feed (RSS)

Share |

Japan wins World Baseball Classic

Japan beats Cuba 10 to 6 to win the World Baseball Classic.

The next WBC is slated for 2009.





—Mellow Monk

Go to the Mellow Monk tea page
Bookmark this blog
Subscribe to the blog feed (RSS)

Share |

Hideki Matsui, green tea drinker

An article on the New York Daily News website says that the New York Yankees' Hideki Matsui is an avid green tea drinker who spends a few quiet moments sipping green tea in the Yankees locker room right before a game.

This is a perfect example of the Mellow Monk philosophy of green tea: a cup of tea should also be a chance to take a step back from everything and relax. When you're anxious or stressed out, green tea, with its gentle aroma and flavor, is the perfect way to mellow out.

—Mellow Monk

Go to the Mellow Monk tea page
Bookmark this blog
Subscribe to the blog feed (RSS)

Share |

What Ichiro's name means

Ichiro Suzuki, the Japan-born Seattle Mariners powerhouse known among baseball fans simply as "Ichiro," is obviously his parents' eldest son. We know this without having to verify it. Not because of lines on his palm or some sort of aura around him, but because of his name, which literally means "first boy." When they named him, Ichiro's parents were following a very old custom that is still followed today, although was much more common, say, a hundred years ago. Then, the average couple had 4 to 6 children, and there were lots of Ichiro's, Jiro's (second son), and Saburo's (third son). Interestingly, a similar custom apparently exists in the Spanish-speaking world, where first-born sons sometimes receive the first or middle name of "Primero" (first), and sons born next are sometimes named "Segundo" (second). We wonder if similar customs exists in other cultures, as well.

UPDATE:
As an astute reader recently pointed out, I was wrong about this one. (Hey, everyone is allowed one mistake per lifetime, right?) Actually, I had posted a correction, but I should have also posted a correction to this, the original post. What can I say. I was young and not well versed in the ways of the blogosphere then. —Monk, April 28, 2008.


Return to the Mellow Monk home page

Share |