Baseball Toaster The Griddle
Help
A place where a man can slow down to a walk and live his life full measure, but he has to keep his watch on Pacific Time.
Frozen Toast
Search
Google Search
Web
Toaster
The Griddle
Archives

2009
02  01 

2008
12  11  10  09  08  07 
06  05  04  03  02  01 

2007
12  11  10  09  08  07 
06  05  04  03  02  01 

2006
12  11  10  09  08  07 
06  05  04  03  02  01 

2005
12  10  07 
06  05  04  03 
Suggestions, comments, ring the catcher's interference alarm?

Email me at btimmermann@gmail.com

The stuff I keep track of
Random Game Callbacks

Select a date:

Personal favorites that I wrote
FAQs
A tradition like none other?
2008-03-26 17:29
by Bob Timmermann

No, it's not The Masters. It's the way Pirates reliever Masumi Kuwata announced his retirement today.

To honor Japanese tradition, Kuwata carefully walked to the McKechnie Field mound about an hour after the Tigers-Pirates exhibition game ended and, without stepping on the white-painted pitching rubber, carefully placed a ball atop it.

More than 50 Japanese reporters and photographers watched the ceremony, some with visible emotion. Kuwata is a beloved baseball figure back home after spending his career with the country’s signature team, the Yomiuri Giants.

------------------

Kuwata was 173-141 with a 3.55 ERA in 442 career games with the Yomiuri Giants and was chosen the league’s pitcher of the year in 1987.

Comments
2008-03-26 18:03:43
1.   chris in illinois
Pretty classy exit.
2008-03-26 18:22:28
2.   Greg Brock
That's actually really cool. Like wrestlers leaving their shoes on the mat.
2008-03-26 18:28:18
3.   Eric Enders
Well, it's better than Bruce Gardner's retirement, which was the first thing that came to mind upon reading this.
2008-03-26 19:38:31
4.   68elcamino427
The tradition of showing respect.
Ember Nickel could do something great with this.
2008-03-26 19:42:18
5.   MC Safety
The Griddle rules.
2008-03-26 20:09:51
6.   Eric Stephen
Jim Nantz would have punctuated this retirement by saying "Ku-wata way to go out."

Comment status: comments have been closed. Baseball Toaster is now out of business.