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| our guy has such a classic swing, too |
Two homers for Kazuma Okamato! Or indeed for 岡本 和真 Okamoto Kazuma, were we to indulge in a little 日本語 Nihongo for just a sec (hey anybody else up for a couple thousand haiku in translation including the complete 芭蕉 Bashō? no? that's mostly just me? hey fair enough; just thought I would ask). It might well have been three homers on the night, given the deep fly ball Okamoto struck in his final plate appearance, but the explanation here is simple: "I didn’t have my pre-game quesadilla today," Okamoto told reporters with the help of his interpreter Yusuke Oshima. "I think if I’d had that, it would have been a home run." I can find no fault with this analysis. Okamoto is our team leader in home runs with seven, and over the last two weeks, has knocked in a league-best fourteen runs (largely a function of Vladdy being on base at an absurd rate, which perhaps bears mentioning [I actually love to mention it]). Okamoto has been a delight since he arrived, and revealed himself at once to be kind of a silly guy, telling the press on his first day with the club that the two most important things everyone should know about him is that he is very serious, and very manly. In a sense, why even mention either of these attributes, as they are the two qualities most clearly demonstrated upon his official webpage, launched in February? "YAKYUU UMAI," the scrolling text proclaims. "I am good at baseball." Just in case he switches it up someday, I want to preserve this webpage in its entirety for us here:
That's literally it; that's the whole thing. And lest we think there is maybe something we're missing culturally here (and I'm sure there's something, since there is always something), so far as I can tell, the response to the launch of this website within the Japanese baseball internet seems to have largely been "lol bro wtf even is this." Speaking of the Japanese baseball internet, prominent social media user "@ay222000" recently posted the following (just like this, in English):
"I used to only watch the Blue Jays to see Kazuma Okamoto, but lately, I’ve noticed I get a bit grumpy whenever the team loses. I think I’m officially becoming a fan!
Since I’ve been so focused on Okamoto, I have a few mysteries I need help solving:
• Mystery No.1: I saw a guy with a mustache at 2B one day, then someone who looked just like him made a diving catch in LF the next day. Are they the same person?
• Mystery No.2: Someone fractured their toe but was back running in less than a month. Is he a superhuman?
• Mystery No.3: I haven't seen the manager in a uniform yet. Is that guy actually the manager, or am I being pranked?
• Mystery No.4: A 'cuddly' player who was incredibly fast suddenly vanished. Where did he go?
I’ve already found the reporter who gets drenched in ice water by Vlad Jr., but I need more info! Which accounts should I follow to keep up with the team?"
Responses to this delightful post have been cheerful and generous, and will no doubt serve to strengthen the already deep bonds between our two nations (anybody else have a Japanese sister city? we've got Hakodate! let's go 北海道日本ハムファイターズ Hokkaidō Nippon-Hamu Faitāzu! 頑張って! Ganbatte, guys!).
I would add in closing that all of last night's Okamoto fun occurred against the backdrop of another five (plus!) innings from Patrick Corbin, like it of not. We liked it! Kind of a lot! I don't blame anyone for giving up two-run dingers to Byron Buxton, everybody's favourite Twin since Joe Mauer. That's just a part of the game.
KS
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