looking better and better in pinstripes

looking better and better in pinstripes
It's not that Ichiro Suzuki would start going through the motions, for he'd rather slice off his left arm than dishonor the sport, but as his season on these shores closed again with a whimper, he'd catch himself wondering what life was like on the other side.
Ichiro Suzuki is showing there's still gas in his 38-year-old tank. (AP Photo)
Then came the stunning trade from the Seattle Mariners to the New York Yankees,[link widoczny dla zalogowanych], landing Ichiro smack in the middle of a world that really has to be experienced to be believed. Why, just on this day alone there is Derek Jeter at one edge of the looking glass, having to clarify that he really does hope to remain in the Bronx for his entire career.
There's a reason Jeter has learned to give the most boring interviews in the universe, because even when he says something obvious-"Well, if I wanted to keep playing,[link widoczny dla zalogowanych], yes. It's a business. People forget that," Jeter had told ESPN, in response to a question about whether he could envision a time when he'd switch teams,[link widoczny dla zalogowanych], like Peyton Manning did in football-the fallout is twisted into screaming front page headlines and raging hysteria.
"That's what makes the Yankees so special and fun," Ichiro, referring to the bigger picture and not the controversial specifics,[link widoczny dla zalogowanych], said through a translator. "There is always something interesting happening. It's like a playoff atmosphere without it being a playoff game."
Though his English is often flawless, as his All-Star teammates always attest,[link widoczny dla zalogowanych], Ichiro, like many Japanese players,[link widoczny dla zalogowanych], doesn't want to offend by making even the smallest grammatical mistake. No matter, because the smile that's nearly as wide as his shoulders is universally self-evident.
For ages it seemed he'd be forever linked to just one team, like Jeter in pinstripes, like Manning in Indianapolis. Now even as Ichiro attempts to blend into this crazy cauldron, he can't help but stand out. It's his rainbow socks and those high stocking baseball pants, the way he is constantly stretching and twisting his body into poses that seem almost impossible, as if he's hooked to an invisible Pilates contraption. He's slightly funky, often quirky,[link widoczny dla zalogowanych], and when he comes to the plate he makes it impossible to look away.
Upon bringing him aboard on July 23, just around the time the Yankees' 10-game lead in the American League East began to evaporate, the team wasn't sure where he'd exactly fit. They hoped he wouldn't be rankled by batting toward the bottom of the order (he wasn't) and crossed their fingers he had some gas left in his 38-year-old tank.
Initially, as he warmed to the Stadium's peculiarities, it looked as if Ichiro were trying to flick hits and find a respectful place in a clubhouse of superstars. September began with him starting in eight of the 15 games in which he appeared,[link widoczny dla zalogowanych], and now it's rounding into a month in which Joe Girardi simply can't afford to have him sit.
Months from now, perhaps as New York readies for another parade down the Canyon of Heroes, will we point to this week as the moment when it all crystallized? With the Baltimore Orioles huffing at the Yankees' shins, Ichiro had one of those series that makes Yankee haters want to toss a mug at their TVs.
In a desperate three-game sweep of the Blue Jays, Ichiro went 9-for-12 with a home run,[link widoczny dla zalogowanych], three doubles, four RBI, four steals and four runs scored. He added two more hits Friday in a 2-1, 10-inning Yankees victory over Oakland. Squinting into the dying sun,[link widoczny dla zalogowanych], Ichiro gracefully dove to grab a sinking line drive, halting all those whispers about him having lost a step.
The next day, when bodies seemed to still be dragging, it was Ichiro's home run that boosted the Yankees' comeback, then his bases-loaded double to right that drew the lead. He had stolen four bases the night before, for 25 on the season, but after playing 27 innings in 34 hours he turned to reporters,[link widoczny dla zalogowanych], grinned wide and admitted to being sad that the fun had ended.
"You can ask me why now, why I'm feeling like I do, but I don't have a reason,[link widoczny dla zalogowanych]," he said Friday. "The game has taught me to never wonder why things happen. I try to just appreciate it when it does."
Where once he was projected to platoon with Andruw Jones, Ichiro will instead be a heavy fixture down the stretch. Girardi might rest him a day or two across these next two heated weeks, as the pennant race careens toward nirvana,[link widoczny dla zalogowanych], but don't expect Girardi to channel his inner party guy no matter how much Ichiro continues to titillate.
But wouldn't it be something if Girardi's binder whispered to him to fiddle with his lineup and maybe bat Ichiro first and Jeter second consistently? Jeter, in the midst of a remarkable season at age 38, leads the majors with 203 hits. The move would defy all that we think we know about Yankee baseball, two pesky geezers at the top of the order creating chaos unusual for the big bopping club. Ichiro, alas, won't even bother to entertain such a mad hatter idea.
"I'm very happy with how everything is right now,[link widoczny dla zalogowanych]," he said.
Come the offseason, Ichiro will be a tantalizing free agent. The Hall of Fame waits, a second act in Japan beckons,[link widoczny dla zalogowanych], but he's not averse to a few more surprises. Never forget, there were an awful lot of baseball geniuses who reckoned he was too frail to survive long in the major leagues,[link widoczny dla zalogowanych], that he'd never consistently endure grueling 162-game seasons.
"The future? I look forward to what it brings," is all he will say. He's not inclined to dwell much on the past either,[link widoczny dla zalogowanych], doesn't want the present to be complicated by idle talk of his lone spin through the playoffs way back in 2001. That's when he batted .600 in the ALDS against the Cleveland Indians, before running into the Yankee juggernaut.
A September pennant race in New York "is pretty cool," he will admit that. October is even better, he's told, but he only nods. Someone mentions Ray Bourque, the magnificent hockey player who had to leave his beloved Boston Bruins to finally win a Stanley Cup. He did so in his last NHL game,[link widoczny dla zalogowanych], with the Colorado Avalanche. Ichiro nods again,[link widoczny dla zalogowanych], smoothly refusing to engage in this tricky conversation.
Two days before the World Series is set to begin,[link widoczny dla zalogowanych], Ichiro will turn 39. He looks good in pinstripes, a vision that seemed impossible just a few months back. On this side of the looking glass, you just never know what lunacy lies ahead, do you?
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