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...More than even he knows. There's a Pepsi ad in Japan that pictures Ichiro swinging a bat above the words "change the world." It's not just marketing. His was supposed to be the tough adjustment, but in truth Ichiro has made few concessions. American fans, pitchers and general managers are the ones scrambling to adjust. Already his success has killed, once and for all, the long-held conceit that a small Japanese player (Ichiro is 1.75 m tall and weighs 72.6 kg) would be overwhelmed in the major leagues. In Japan, meanwhile, it has completely altered the landscape...
NEXT UP AT BAT Coming Attractions...
...Ichiro's at bats are clinics in working over a pitcher: stretch, shirt tug, foul, foul, foul, flare to left center. With his maddening skill at making contact, it's nearly impossible to fire three pitches past Ichiro. When he dives after a curveball in the dirt, as Zito induces him to do in his first at bat, "I can't really pat myself on the back," Zito says. He figures Ichiro just made a rare mistake...
...ballplayers to wash the uniforms of the seniors, so to make sure he lost no daylight practice time, Ichiro would wake up at 3 a.m. to do the laundry. During classes he slept. In his first year as a professional he spent most of his free time in the batting cage, with teammates coming and going from breakfast, lunch, nap, dinner to the endless tattoo of his bat on ball...
...only reasonable place to while away the afternoon hours. If a room is not in your budget, day use of the pool costs $4. And if you really feel like splashing out, or your feet need a little maintenance after a day of walking barefoot through temples littered with bat guano, a pedicure in the '50s vintage beauty salon goes for $3. Call (91-7686) 723-55 for reservations...