Ichiro Suzuki learned Spanish so he could trash talk opponents

Anyone who was a fan of the Seattle Mariners in the early part of this century knows that Ichiro Suzuki, despite the fact that some of his antics got lost in translation, was one of the biggest jokers in the major leagues. According to the Wall Street Journal, Ichiro learned some Spanish phrases so he can give some good-natured ribbing to opponents.

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You won’t see Ichiro carrying on a conversation in Spanish anytime soon, but next time you watch a Yankees game, see how Ichiro interacts with Latin players.

"Ichiro said about Latin players: “I feel a bond with them. We’re all foreigners in a strange land.” So his response to that was to learn some of their native tongue. Ichiro added: “we don’t really have curse words in Japanese, so I like the fact that the Western languages allow me to say things that I otherwise can’t."

He has made an impression on all sorts of Latin players from Carlos Pena, to Ramon Santiago, and even Miguel Cabrera. Pena remembers a moment when he was playing first base for the Tampa Bay Rays. After reaching first base on an infield hit, Ichiro asked Pena “What the hell are you looking at?” in Spanish.

All that most of us, opponents included, have seen of Ichiro is of him speaking Japanese to the press during press conferences. He has always communicated through an interpreter since his arrival in the United States.

So you can understand opponents being caught off guard by a Japanese guy trash-talking them in their native language. But that is how it is with Ichiro. He has caught everyone off guard at one point or another in his 14 year major league career.