Just one week ago, Minnesotans found themselves in the midst of one of the biggest blizzards in the state’s history. Twenty inches of snow and one collapsed Metrodome roof later, the impact of the storm left a mark on the Twin Cities. But just as people in the Twin Cities finally moved past the storm, a tsunami that goes by the name of “Yoshi” or “Nishi” rolled into town.
Tsuyoshi Nishioka arrived in Minneapolis on Thursday, effectively beginning a new era in Minnesota baseball. Nishioka has become the first Japanese player to sign with the Minnesota Twins. The move takes the Twins off the list of four remaining teams in Major League Baseball that had never signed a Pacific League player.
After seeing second baseman Orlando Hudson leave for San Diego in free agency and trading shortstop J.J. Hardy to Baltimore in exchange for a couple of pitchers, the Twins had two key spots in the infield that needed to be filled.
While it hasn’t officially been confirmed by the organization, it has been widely speculated that Alexi Casilla will finally get his chance to be an everyday starter in the Twins infield. Assuming Casilla finds a permanent home in the starting lineup, Nishioka is the final piece to the infield puzzle.
But the signing of Tsuyoshi Nishioka signifies much more than just the replacement of a position. Nishioka brings an entire nation with him in joining the Minnesota Twins. Elite baseball players in the Pacific League gain the same amount of media attention overseas that movie stars and famous musicians face on a daily basis in the United States.
Entering the conference room at Target Field for the press conference to officially introduce Nishioka as a member of the Twins, it became very apparent that the Twins game day experience will never be the same again.
More than an hour before the news conference was scheduled to start, the room was completely full, foreign media making up around 80 percent of the crowd. As the conference started, even Twins third baseman Danny Valencia found himself scrambling to find an open seat to watch the proceedings.
Flashbulbs and camera clicks took over when Nishioka arrived in the room, and a rousing applause rang out when he put on his No. 1 jersey for the first time. Before allowing his translator to moderate the news conference, Nishioka even tried his hand at speaking English, sharing with the media in attendance the following statement: “I’m excited to be part of the Twins family. Thank you.” Along with Nishioka’s seemingly constant smile, the statement brought another round of applause from those in the room.
As Nishioka continued, it became easier to see how he could be so well-liked in his native Japan. When asked if he would rather be playing second base or shortstop, Nishioka simply responded, “I don’t think I have any say to have a preference of playing second base or shortstop. I’m preparing for both. I’ll do whatever the manager tells me. If the manager wants me to be a ball boy, I’ll do that.”
Speaking with members of the Japanese media who had regularly taken part in covering Ichiro’s time in Seattle, I was told that people in Minnesota should expect a massive following to arrive at Target Field as spring comes around. After asking the reporter to elaborate, I was told, “Fans will come in large groups to every game, signs and banners written in Yoshi’s native language will be everywhere.”
He continued, “This won’t only be for games in Minnesota, but also in other cities. Asian Americans everywhere followed these elite players closely when they were in the Pacific League, and that won’t change now that they’re in the United States.”
It will be interesting to see how the marketing team for the Twins handles their newly expanded fan base in 2011. The Seattle Mariners management made many game-day changes when Ichiro arrived, including expanded concession offerings such as sushi and stir fry. Team chants in Ichiro’s native tongue were played over the PA system regularly when the star rightfielder would come up to bat.
As 2011 approaches, you can bet that Target Field will adopt some of these customs, stretching the reach of “Twins Territory” farther than ever before.
In an offseason where the Twins have seen their division rivals stock up with talent, Twins fans needed to see a move that would show that the team isn’t content to hold its position. The signing of Tsuyoshi Nishioka signifies a major change for baseball in Minnesota, a change that the organization hopes will help catapult the team to the next level in 2011.
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