JAPAN NEWS AND DISCUSSION
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- English Instructor (Osaka, Kyoto, Kobe)
- Berlitz Japan, Inc. (ベルリッツ・ジャパン株式会社), Kansai
- Salary: ¥125,000 ~ ¥250,000 / Month
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- FT English Teachers for Kids - Osaka
- Kohgakusha Co., Ltd. （株式会社興学社）, Osaka
- Salary: ¥255,000 ~ ¥275,000 / Month Travel Expenses, Encouragement of Japanese learning*
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- Translator
- ZAIHON, Inc. (日本財務翻訳株式会社), Tokyo
- Salary: ¥6.0M / Year Negotiable
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Hotbox08
I gotta agree with you barfly. Hiroki Kuroda is the much better pitcher and more clutch. Kuroda went 2-0 in the postseason for the Dodgers, and would have gotten more, had their lackluster offense picked it up more, and had Kuroda been pitching in games one and four, instead of three and none. He shut down the high-powered Cubs offense for zero runs and went to war for his own teammates by issuing a much-needed retaliation against the Phillies. In my mind, he pitched much better and more effectively than Matsuzaka, and even his own teammates, Lowe and Billingsley. I wouldn't be surprised to see Kuroda being the no. 1 starter next year, and even in the All-star game.
But, to be fair, all Boston pitchers sucked this postseason. Beckett got shelled in game 2, Lester got whipped in game 3, Wakefield got shellacked and lasted only two innings in game 4, and Dicek got hit hard in game 5. The Rays however, were outstanding throughout. A great team effort by all players. Rays all the way!
Posted in: Rays beat Boston to advance to World Series
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Hotbox08
Not really; read this article again. No mention of Iwamura, nor Taguchi. Iwamura does play a big part in the Ray's lineup though. I've been following MLB all year, as well as American and Japan coverage of it, so I would know. If anything, the Japanese press has been overexposing Matsuzaka and Ichiro, while devoting way too little coverage to Iwamura (when in fact, he is more valuable to his team than all other J-players combined).
Together with Pena, Iwamura, Bartlett, and Longoria, they form the best defensive infield in the majors. They are among the league leaders in double plays, and playing second base, Iwamura is often times in the middle of them. He hasn't been hitting well this year, but his defense, along with his infield teammates, have prevented so many runs from scoring. (Navarro is the one player who is prone to making mistakes, but he is still a very young catcher.) And more than that, he is an extremely friendly and outspoken teammate. All his teammates love him and he was even in the middle of a brawl with the Red Sox, earlier this year, trying to back up his own teammates.
This commaraderie is something that also impressed me with the LA Dodgers' pitcher Kuroda, who aslo showed that he had his teammates backs and would go to war with them if needed to. Can't say the same about Ichiro. Kuroda, in my eyes is a much better pitcher than Matsuzaka, since he often goes deeper in games and has even pitched two complete games this year. He induces a lot of ground balls and popups, and thus makes quick work of hitters. He doesn't care about his stats and gets so little run support, but he keeps on fighting.
Posted in: Rays beat Boston to advance to World Series
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Hotbox08
Actuall, Stuart Sternberg does, as he is majority owner; and a fine one at that. He is credited with dropping the "devil" from their name and I was touched when he even called to ask a baseball legend who has been connected to the MLB for 6 decades, Don Zimmer, to throw the ceremonial first pitch of this game. Zimmer, as most will remember, was a former head coach with the Cubs, as well as a few other teams. He is now a senior advisor with the Rays. Brought a tear to my eye seeing him again.
Posted in: Rays beat Boston to advance to World Series
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Hotbox08
Funny you should say that. After perusing this article posted by JT, not one mention of Iwamura. Lots of props in this article to Garza, Pena, Upton, and Longoria. A Japan nationalist, are you? To be fair though, you are right, Okajima did his part. He pitched 10 complete innings in total, throughout this postseason (vs. the Angels and Rays); more than any other Red Sox relief pitcher. He, Masterson, and Papsmear were relied on heavily, as they were the only Boston relievers (and the only Boston pitchers for that matter) to have any dependability.
But props to the whole Tampa organization, from the top management, to its players. Great play all around. Go and beat the Phillies. Go rays!
Posted in: Rays beat Boston to advance to World Series
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Hotbox08
I gotta agree. At first, I really didn't like natto at all. But after having tried it several times, I really got to like it. It tastes great with rice and some chopped green onions. It also goes down much lighter than those oily greasy burgers they have at McDonald's (I now know how Morgan Spurlock felt when he barfed his McDs out his car window). Yes, it's an acquired taste, like many healthy foods (brussel sprouts, cauliflower, rice cakes, ...). At the very least, natto can be digested; which is more than I can say for those hard-as-a-rock fruitcakes I used to get during Christmastime back home (which I swear has been passed around the country from Christmas to Christmas; person to person).
Posted in: Natto with sukiyaki sauce
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Hotbox08
How does Alaska’s proximity to Russia provide evidence of your foreign policy experience?
Well, it certainly does because our ... our next door neighbors are foreign countries. They're in the state that I am the executive of. And there in Russia ... We have trade missions back and forth. We ... we do it's very important when you consider even national security issues with Russia as Putin rears his head and comes into the air space of the United States of America, where ... where do they go? It's Alaska. It's just right over the border. --- Sarah Palin
Why would Palin be so good for NASA?
Because there is so much space between her ears.
Posted in: McCain, Obama get tough, personal in final debate
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Hotbox08
Great job Rays! How much does anyone want to bet that the World Series will include a Japanese player on each team? In fact, I bet that there will be a Japanese player on the World Series champion team (which would make it the fourth year in a row that a Japanese baseball player won the World Series ring.
Posted in: Rays homer 4 times to rout Boston 9-1; Phillies edge Dodgers
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Hotbox08
Wow! I have a newfound respect for Kuroda. He not only pitched a brilliant game and served as stopper for his team, he earned the respect of his teammates by signalling to them that he "has their back". After being hit by pitches thrown by Philly pitchers, with no retalitation by other Dodger pitchers, Hiro said "enough's enough" and flew one over the head of Victorino. Wow! The "Ninja" strikes again!
Posted in: Dodgers beat Phillies; fight way back into NLCS
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Hotbox08
50 police officers, or 50 police officers and firefighters? Which is it?
Posted in: Naked Briton detained after swimming in Imperial Palace moat
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Hotbox08
I couldn't agree with you more, projecthaberno. As a result, the Rays are one win away from the ALCS and the Cubs are one loss away from elimination. Aki also has played a key role in both of the Ray's wins. In game one, he hit an RBI triple and scored a run on an excellent slide at home plate. In game two, he hit the go-ahead two-run homer. Overall, he has played error-free defense.
Posted in: Rays rally to beat White Sox 6-2
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Hotbox08
Here's a nice article about Iwamura:
http://www2.tbo.com/content/2008/oct/04/sp-akis-game-never-lost-in-translation/sports/
Posted in: Rays rally to beat White Sox 6-2
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Hotbox08
Great win for the Rays! Terrific performance all around. Great pitching by Kazmir and the bullpen. Awesome go-ahead homer by Akinori. The Trop was rocking.
Posted in: Rays rally to beat White Sox 6-2
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Hotbox08
Naw, the U.S. still has some financial dominance in the form of military expenditure. The business of war and death; although not currently a lucrative one for America, is still alive and well. I'm just worried that the economic gap, which has always been present, is widening at a maddening pace. Under Bush, incomes in the lower fifth of the economic ladder have declined by almost 3%, while the top fifth have increased by 9%.
Posted in: Era of U.S. financial dominance over: Medvedev
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Hotbox08
Yay! Rays win the opener 6-4! Longoria had an awesome game, driving in three runs with a stolen base. Akinok also had a terrific game getting two hits in four at-bats and driving in a run and scoring a run himself. Next up, ace Kazmir takes the mound.
Posted in: White Sox edge Twins to reach playoffs
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Hotbox08
What? Don't you know anything about baseball at all? You play to your strengths at all times. That is the true meaning of teamwork. Although I agree that IDEALLY it would be better to go for a homerun when you are down by a lot of runs, you don't start hacking away in the process of doing it if it is not something that you are meant and paid to do. Take a look at a leadoff hitter's position. Most of them don't go for homeruns because they are not paid and are not in the position to do so. One of my favorite hitters (albeit on a team I hate) Chone Figgins, has never reached double digits in homers in a season ever, yet he does what he is meant to do and get on base, steal and disrupt the pitcher's concentration in the process. It is why they have players like Vladdy to do it.
At least nigelboy looks like the only other poster on this thread that knows something about baseball. You are correct that getting on base should be the first priority. I agree with one point that you have stated, hoserfella: Never bunt to upset a no hitter; or a perfect game for that matter.
Nevertheless, GO AKINOK AND THE TAMPA RAYS!
Posted in: Mariners malcontent centering on Ichiro
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Hotbox08
I read this on Yahoo:
Wow! American taxpayers are in deep doo doos.
Posted in: U.S. lawmakers try to revise bailout plan
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Hotbox08
Up next: The Tampa Rays. Watch out White Sox, because you are going to meet a real team that can flat out play defense. Go Rays!
Posted in: White Sox edge Twins to reach playoffs
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Hotbox08
All of you posters up there don't seem you know what you are talking about: Ichiro and the Mariners suck big time anyway. The real story should be Akinok and his Rays. Iwamura is a bigtime player and is the polar opposite of Ichiro. He doesn't get the big stats like Ichiro, but Akinok is a valuable cog in the Tampa machine. He is also a known comedian and loved by all his teammates and fans (the ones that actually come out to see them play, since Tampa Bay's been having problems getting attendance numbers). Heck, Akinok doesn't even care about his stats, as he doesn't get many homers (as does the rest of his team), but gets a ton of timely hits and has a high RISP (Runners in Scoring Position, for those of you who don't know baseball).
Posted in: Mariners malcontent centering on Ichiro