Blue Jays’ Munenori Kawasaki brings energy to diverse clubhouse

TORONTO – In a game against the Toronto Blue Jays last year, Seattle shortstop Munenori Kawasaki drew a walk, bounced up the line and shouted a cheery “konichiwa” to the first baseman.

Adam Lind had to smile. Next game, another walk, another animated trip to first base and another “good afternoon” in Japanese.

“I said to myself, ‘That’s my favourite player in the big leagues,’ ” Lind recalled. “And here he is on my team now.”

Kawasaki has played only five games for the Blue Jays, but in his first home game, the Rogers Centre fans were chanting his name by the eighth inning. He got a rousing ovation when the lineup was announced before the next two games.

He walked into his new clubhouse last Saturday in Kansas City, and with bows and smiles and just a few words in English, he became an instant hit. After the Jays won, catcher J.P. Arencibia tweeted: “1st star – Kawasaki for the best dugout Japanese cheering of all time! Mic him up, u will laugh non stop!”

During batting practice Wednesday, Kawasaki did several headstands against the screen behind home plate, sat on his knees and bounced to the music from the stadium speakers, broke into raucous laughter in a conversation with Arencibia and exuberantly advised a TV interviewer, in English: “I can’t speak English because I am Japanese!”

Following his turn in the cage, he dropped his bat and batting gloves to the turf and sternly admonished them to stay put.

You’re not going to see a lot of extra-base hits or balls over the fence, but he’s a contact bat, he gives you a good at-bat, he grinds it, he’ll be a pest up at the plate, he’ll foul some balls off

Conformity is a bedrock norm in Japanese culture, as a famous proverb attests: “The nail that sticks up gets hammered down.” Munenori Kawasaki is an exception. From the time he was a kid, nobody could hammer down his spontaneous and ubiquitous joy, especially on a baseball field.

“I’ve always played with a smile on my face,” Kawsaki said in an interview before Wednesday night’s game. “There were times when people got irritated with me or said I laughed and joked around too much. But I would forget about it and go back to smiling.”

For an English-only reporter, this was an odd interview. The National Post enlisted the help of two reporters for Japanese newspapers, Justin Maki of Kyodo News and Tomohiko Yasuoka of JiJi Press in Tokyo. Using questions provided in advance, Maki outlined the questions to Yasuoka, who addressed Kawasaki in Japanese. Afterward, Yasuoka, who speaks little English, gave the answers in Japanese to Maki, who translated them into English.

As the interview wrapped up, I mentioned Emilio Bonifacio’s name to Kawasaki. His face lit up. Then he made a V with his fingers and framed them over his right eye in the “Lo Viste” salute originated by Bonifacio.

“I like him,” Kawasaki said in Japanese. Then, sliding happily into Bonifacio’s native language, he added: “Te amo!”

After Kawasaki tripled and scored the deciding run in Monday’s Toronto victory, TV cameras showed him and Bonifacio, standing side by side in the dugout, bowing and giving the “Lo Viste” salute, which means, in effect, “Look at this!”

After playing for 11 seasons in Japan, Kawasaki signed with the Mariners last year and batted .192 in 61 games. But his antics, including elaborate dances in the dugout, endeared him to fans, many of whom lamented his departure when Seattle let him go after the season.

He was out of work in March when Jays assistant general manager Andrew Tinnish signed him as shortstop insurance and sent him to Triple-A Buffalo, where he was a backup. But when Jose Reyes went down with a severe ankle sprain last Friday, Kawasaki got the call because he plays solid defence.

“You can never have too many players that can legitimately play shortstop. It’s hard to find those guys,” said GM Alex Anthopoulos.

And within three days, Anthopoulos was saying: “His teammates absolutely adore him.”

Which is no assurance that Kawasaki will be around all summer or even until Reyes returns, likely around the all-star break. Anthopoulos is keeping an eye out for upgrades from other clubs, although his priority is defence, and Kawasaki provides that.

“You’re not going to see a lot of extra-base hits or balls over the fence, but he’s a contact bat, he gives you a good at-bat, he grinds it, he’ll be a pest up at the plate, he’ll foul some balls off,” Anthopoulos said. “The contact ability at least allows him to do the little things. He’s a smart player.”

On Wednesday night, Kawasaki singled twice. He also drew an 11-pitch walk, fouling off five consecutive 3-2 pitches. The crowd loved it.

Kawasaki is 31. Understandably, manager John Gibbons keeps calling him a kid. The new shortstop says coaches in Japan initially frowned on his exuberance, but he eventually won them over because of his work ethic and talent. And he has a knack for making fast friends wherever he goes, notwithstanding the language barrier.

“If you say to a person, ‘I like you,’ generally that person will not respond by saying ‘I hate you,’ ” he said. “I suppose it could happen, but that hasn’t been my experience.”

While Kawasaki belies the proverb about the protruding nail, there is another Japanese saying that fits him perfectly. It goes: “Time spent laughing is time spent with the gods.”