Interpreters in Baseball Making Sure Nothing Is Lost in Translation

[Harold F. Schiffman]

NYTimes, February 25, 2007

Interpreters in Baseball Making Sure Nothing Is Lost in Translation

By JACK CURRY

TAMPA, Fla., Feb. 24 Six Yankees jogged across a practice field here,
along a path lined with excited fans, toward the bullpen of an adjacent
field. The fans recognized and shouted to Mike Mussina, Chien-Ming Wang,
Andy Pettitte, Carl Pavano and Kei Igawa, the pitchers who are projected
to be in the starting rotation this season. But some fans said they were
curious about the identity of the man in a blue Yankees sweatshirt who was
running beside Igawa. Tall and serious, he stayed close to Igawa, even
carrying his sweatshirt. He is not a candidate for the rotation or a
little-known coach. He is Igawas interpreter.

His name is Yumi Watanabe, and he remained within a few steps of Igawa,
who speaks only Japanese. When Igawa throws in the bullpen, Watanabe is
closer to him than the pitching coach. If someone needs to speak to him,
Watanabe said, Im ready to pounce. As the internationalization of Major
League Baseball continues and more Japanese players come here to play,
teams have increasingly been hiring interpreters to help ease their
transition. Unlike Latin American players, who can usually find teammates,
coaches and club officials who speak Spanish, Japanese players rarely have
that option.

In this evolving aspect of the game, the interpreters are becoming a more
visible presence in the daily routines of numerous teams. General managers
say they want the players who are acclimating to the United States to feel
as comfortable as possible. Coaches say they want to know their
instructions are being understood. And the players, who have achieved
success in Japan and are expected to produce instantly here, want to
express themselves, too. These players have a lot of needs and are
important to us, said Brian Cashman, the general manager of the Yankees.
So the people who translate are very important. You have to have the right
people in place to support them.

The Yankees, the Boston Red Sox and the Seattle Mariners, each with two
Japanese players, will each have two full-time interpreters this season.
They are responsible for helping the players communicate with their
teammates and the news media. But the interpreters, who range from an Ivy
Leaguer to a former security guard, do more than decipher English and
Japanese. Some perform the tasks of a personal assistant, too. Cashman
said that players who could not read or speak English needed help with
routine tasks like acquiring a drivers license, renting an apartment and
opening a bank account. The Yankees give interpreters a job description,
and it includes some off-the-field responsibilities.

You cant say youre only going to help him within the confines of the
stadium and then leave him alone, said Roger Kahlon, who has interpreted
for Yankees left fielder Hideki Matsui since 2003. As Cashman said: Its
not just translating. Its assimilating them into the new culture. Matsui
understands some English and speaks a little, too. On one recent day, he
said, How are you? when he arrived and See you tomorrow when he left.
Still, Matsui does no interviews in English and considers Kahlons presence
essential during a season that can last eight months.

Obviously, on the field, the communication and having an interpreter to
help is very important, Matsui said through Kahlon. Beyond that, whats
more important is the way the interpreter helps away from the field. An
interpreter, to me, becomes a really good friend. The Yankees will pay
Matsui $13 million and Igawa $4 million this season, so they consider it
shrewd to spend about $300,000 on the salaries and expenses for the
interpreters. The team also has a Japanese news media adviser, Isao
Hirooka. Some team executives said one concern with interpreters was that
the service was not granted to every player who did not speak English.
Kahlon said he occasionally felt awkward and wondered if foreign players
without someone like him grew resentful. The Yankees do not have a Spanish
interpreter, but Cashman said Tony Pea, a coach, and other club personnel
served that role.

In addition, Wang, who is Taiwanese, no longer has an interpreter. The
Yankees said his interpreter was inconsistent and they dismissed him. Now
Wang says he speaks English well enough to handle himself. The Red Sox
gave pitcher Daisuke Matsuzaka a six-year, $52 million contract that
includes a full-time interpreter. The team hired a Harvard graduate, who
is expected to join Matsuzaka soon. Reliever Hideki Okajima also has an
interpreter. While Brad Mills, Bostons bench coach, stood on a bullpen
mound Thursday in Fort Myers, Fla., and described a fielding drill, he
paused every few words so that Masai Takahashi, an assistant trainer and
interpreter, could translate for Matsuzaka and Okajima. It is very
important to have my feelings understood by others, Okajima said through
Sachiyo Sekiguchi, who handles the teams Japanese media relations. I need
somebody to deliver what I feel and what I have in my mind.

John Farrell, Bostons pitching coach, said theres no replacing clear
communication as he described the importance of interpreters. But Farrell
has also worked with a Japanese tutor, and he said he knew about 25
baseball phrases in Japanese. Going through it has been a very humbling
experience, he said. The Red Sox learned quickly that a competent
interpreter was a necessity.  During Matsuzakas introductory news
conference at Fenway Park, he gave detailed answers, but the translation
did not convey the full flavor of his comments.

In Japan, teams are limited to four foreign players, so the Americans
usually share an interpreter. Sometimes the words are translated,
sometimes not. Lawrence Rocca, the director of promotions for the Chiba
Lotte Marines, said he attended a team meeting about nutrition last year.
After a nutritionist spoke about 10 minutes in Japanese, Rocca said, the
former major leaguer Matt Franco asked the interpreter what had been said.
Rocca said the interpreter replied, Shes saying that you should eat good
food. When the Yankees hired Watanabe as Igawas interpreter, it was
front-page news in Sankei Sports. Watanabe received splashy coverage
because his father is Jesse Kuhaulua, who is better known as the sumo
wrestler Takamiyama. A native Hawaiian, Takamiyama was the first
foreign-born sumo wrestler to win a grand championship in Japan.

Watanabe, 32, was not yet born when his father won that title in 1972. I
didnt think much about it, he said. He was just my father. When Watanabe
moved from a security job with the Yankees to being Igawas interpreter, he
switched from checking reporters credentials to being Igawas right-hand
man. Kahlon, 33, advised Watanabe to study baseball phrases and to remain
relaxed during TV interviews. Deciphering baseball slang is one of the
trickiest parts of the job, Kahlon said. During a hitters meeting, a
Yankees coach said a pitcher liked to paint the black, meaning he aimed
for the corners of the plate.  Kahlon wondered whether the expression
referred to a pitcher using spray paint.

Like other interpreters, Kahlon serves various roles for Matsui and the
Yankees. He plays catch with Matsui and retrieves balls for coaches during
infield practice. But mostly, Kahlon stands beside Matsui on the field or
in the clubhouse, waiting to translate or to do something more. One thing
about interpreting is you have to become a nobody, Kahlon said.  If you
get in the way or you get in the middle of things, thats not being an
interpreter. You have to be a shadow.

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/25/sports/baseball/25translate.html

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