Word: japanized
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India's Prime Minister was in Tokyo Thursday for a historic summit, and although he was accorded the rare honor of addressing Japan's legislature, he couldn't make the front-page lead of the country's national newspapers. That territory belonged to Daisuke Matsuzaka, a 26-year-old pitcher whose six-year, $52 million contract with the Boston Red Sox (plus another $51 million Boston paid to Matsuzaka's old team, the Seibu Lions, just for the right to negotiate with him) is the most lucrative deal ever for a player coming out of Japan. That...
...Matsuzaka burst into national prominence as a teenager in the 1998 Japanese high school baseball championship. The single-elimination Koshien tournament, as it's called, captivates the country every summer - to call it Japan's March Madness would be an understatement. Matsuzaka single-handedly led Yokohama High to the title, pitching much of the tournament and tossing a no-hitter in the championship game. As a pro with the Lions, Matsuzaka continued to dominate from the mound, winning a title and leading his country to the inaugural World Baseball Championship (WBC) last spring...
...That Matsuzaka would eventually follow the likes of Ichiro Suzuki and Hideki Matsui to the U.S. Major Leagues was inevitable, and Japan is proud of his success, if a bit worried that expectations in Boston might be running too high. (Japanese fans may be a little fuzzy on Beantown's traditions, though. Toshiyuki Nagao, a lifelong fan, expressed concern that "there are many academic and white-collar people in Boston, who might not appreciate baseball's earthy passion." Nagao-san, you'll find plenty of earthy passion in the Fenway bleachers.) But some guardians of the Japanese game fear that...
...That's probably wishful thinking. Shared democratic values are unlikely to outweigh China's enormous trade potential for both Japan and India, and Japan won't replace its special relationship with the U.S. - especially if Tokyo remains diplomatically isolated in Asia. A rising India, on the other hand, may be enjoying the new experience of being courted by its neighbors. Chinese President Hu Jintao visited New Delhi last month bearing economic gifts, and Abe will almost certainly acquiesce to India's top priority: Japanese acceptance of the recent deal normalizing U.S. and India's nuclear relation. As the only victim...
...Singh and Abe will no doubt talk trade, and the numbers are going up - bilateral trade between the two increased by 21% last year, as Japanese auto manufacturers in particular move more aggressively into the Indian market. But for Japan, India may be more important as a potential diplomatic counterweight to a rising China, and a democratic friend in an Asia where most other nations still have sour memories of Japan's actions in World War II. Abe has argued that Japan should ally itself with Asian nations that share its values, specifically mentioning Australia and India - and not, interestingly...