ICHIRO SUZUKI Team: Seattle Mariners
Position: right field, bats leadoff
Height: 5 feet 11
Age: 27
Hometown: Kasugai
Star status: Easily Japan’s most popular, accomplished player at the moment and is considered one of the best baseball players in Japan’s history
Record holder: When he was 21, he set a Pacific League record with 210 hits
Big in Japan: Some will pay as much as $1,900 for a package that includes flights to and from Seattle, three nights in a hotel and tickets to two Mariners games.
American fans: They call right field “Area 51,” after his uniform number
Press notes: Doesn’t like reporters, and doesn’t say much when interviewed
Dining habits: “I’ve seen him pick at stuff, especially the kind of food they serve in the clubhouse,” Mariners outfielder Anthony Sanders told USA Today
Drives: A gold SUV
Salary: Signed to a three-year, $14 million contract
Married to: A former Japanese TV personality
Not so uniform: Brazenly persuaded Major League Baseball to allow him to have only his first name on his uniform
The bod: Rumors say a Japanese Web site offered $2 million for anyone who could produce a picture of Suzuki naked
Paparazzi meter: Dozens of Japanese reporters and photographers tail him around town. One Japanese network, NHK-TV, has even wired Seattle’s Safeco Field so the Mariners home games could be broadcast in HDTV
Personality: Considered a loner/genius type. Recently turned down chance to pose for cover of Sports Illustrated, saying he had not done anything to deserve the honor yet
Style file: Has been seen with goatee
Web presence: The Japanese version of the team’s Web site at www.seattlemariners.com gets 7,900 hits a day, compared with 2,500 a week last year
Jeter-potential: 7
Team: Seattle Mariners
Position: relief pitcher
Height: 6 feet 4
Age: 32
Hometown: Sendai
Historical importance: Seen as the best reliever in Japanese League history
Big in Japan: Was the country’s all-time leader in saves, with 229 over 10 seasons. Was also the first Japanese player to earn a salary of 500 million yen (about $4 million, though that record was later broken by Suzuki)
Signature: He’s the team’s closer, known for his diving “forkball from hell” and a devastating split-fingered fastball
How he plays the field: Bows as he slaps high-fives
Nickname: “Kaz,” and in Japan, “Dai-Majin” (the name of a mythical Japanese character with godlike powers)
Honors: Caught American League Rookie of the Year award in 2000, only the second Asian ever to win it
Lucky numbers: He’s No. 22, which he considers lucky because he was born on Feb. 22 at 2:22 a.m.
Style file: Has been seen with goatee
Pitch man: In Japan, he’s a spokesperson for noodles, a vitamin beverage, insurance, the city of Yokohama and Kirin beer. Even a brand of sake bears his name
Language barrier: Teammates have taught him English and Spanish profanity
What the scoreboard reads at Safeco Field: “Kazumania”
What the crowd yells: “Sanshin!” (Strikeout!)
Personality: Shy, but enjoys karaoke, especially the song “Unchained Melody”
Has been seen: Unwinding with cigarettes and Bud Lights, playing pool at a Seattle hangout
Salary: $18 million over the next three years
On the Web: During last season, an average of 3,500 people logged on to the Mariners’ Web site each week for Sasaki news in Japanese
Media presence: Last season, Sasaki appears on the front page of his Japanese hometown newspaper 50 times
Paparazzi meter: “I get to live my own life in Seattle. People are respectful. When I came back to Japan, I had to face the paparazzi. I don’t like that.”
Jeter-potential: 5
Team: New York Mets
Positions: outfield
Height: 6 feet
Age: 29
Hometown: Tokyo
Style file: Known for his orange-red wristbands. Seen around town in designer jeans. Prefers Tommy Hilfiger
Hair: Tinged with red
Press notes: Talkative with reporters. Though also tricky. “I’m no good, I’ll retire,” he said in 1998, only to take it back two days later. In Japan, gets almost as much exposure as Ichiro
Endearing habit: Bows to umpire before at-bats
How he plays the field: Hops as fly balls approach him, holds bat over head like a torch
Nickname: Back in Japan, they call him “The Spaceman”
Salary: Turned down $12 million over five years from the Hanshin Tigers to be a $500,000-a-year Met
On the Web: Has his own Web site, www.shinjyo5.net, which features news, profile and a photo gallery
Married to: A top Japanese model who still lives in Japan
Paparazzi: Ruined his wedding day. Today, a group of two dozen Japanese reporters go to every Mets game
Personality: Likes to sleep as late as possible, drinks a glass of warm water as soon as he gets up. Enjoys *N Sync, 98 Degrees and Britney Spears
Coffee fix: Starbucks
Language barrier: “He knows how to say, ‘I got it’,” teammate Jay Payton told the New York Daily News. “And that’s all I’m concerned about.”
Jeter-potential: 7
