Young Ichiro

Young Ichiro wonders what all the commotion is about.

Young Ichiro, if forced to put a name on his look — and he wouldn’t do it unless you forced him — might call it the “Doctor of Love.”

Listen, you can say all the nice things you want to about Young Ichiro, but he’s probably just going to smile faintly and cough uncomfortably.

Young Ichiro calls his glove ‘shuchu,’ which is Japanese for concentration.

Prod him some, and Young Ichiro will admit he likes pro wrestling. Un-ironically.

Young Ichiro took young Yumiko out on three dates before he ever kissed her.

It’s not like Young Ichiro doesn’t know how to get a little dirty from time to time. He digs holes, you know.

See? Young Ichiro has a sense of humor. Ask him about how he wants to supervise mountains.

And passions! Young Ichiro loves Takoyaki as much as one can love a dish made up primarily of grilled octopus with the occasional garnish of fish flakes.

Sometimes, when Young Ichiro looks like he’s looking meaningfully into the distance, he’s actually just singing a pop song in his head.

You’ll find Young Ichiro under the bleachers once in a while. He’s reading his favorite Manga. No, he won’t tell you what it is.

When Young Ichiro is old Ichiro and all this has faded away, he hopes that he’ll be managing a mushroom patch.

A couple of warm takoyaki balls to Patrick Newman for finding Young Ichiro’s survey — filled out by the superstar in an honest moment of self-reflection back in high school, I imagine — and translating it for his readers at NPBTracker.