At 28 years old, Shintaro Fujinami joined to the Athletics with 252 professional pitching appearances for the Hanshin Tigers under his belt.
Fujinami has plenty of experience, but coming to Major League Baseball presents a different test.
“I feel like a rookie, obviously played baseball all my life, but Japanese baseball and American baseball are different,” Fujinami recently told NBC Sports California through an interpreter.
“Different country, different culture. I feel brand new, like a rookie.”
Fujinami, who signed a one-year, $3.25 million contract with Oakland in January, isn’t hard to find at A’s camp in Mesa, Ariz. He stands 6-foot-6 and is always flanked by his interpreter.
“I enjoy every process, bits of it," Fujinami said. "There are things that go well, sometimes don’t go well. It’s all part of the process and I enjoy it."
His interactions with colleagues are frequent, and usually animated and complimented with body language or hand gestures to help break the language barrier.
Oakland Athletics
“I try to communicate with teammates, and also try to learn English everyday, try to pick up words here and there,” Fujimami said.
“Lot of guys and my teammates around me tell me my English is great … but people think my English is [high] right here, but I feel my English is [low] right here.”
"Fuji" is undertaking a unique challenge, but one that comes with precedent. There are seven other Japanese-born pitchers currently on MLB rosters.
“Before I came over here to the States, I learned the big leaguers, so I know most of them, but not all of them,” Fujinami said.
Pitching-wise, Fujinami had always been known in Japan for his fastball, which regularly clocked triple-digits.
“Obviously my velocity is high, hitters have to make adjustments,” Fujinami said. “If that gets in their head, then all the other breaking balls like my splitter, my go-to pitch, is going to be very effective. Vice versa, if they think about the split, slider, or two-seamer, then the fastball is going to be really effective.”
RELATED: Fujinami ready to face Ohtani in Cactus League debut
Fujinami’s career trajectory hit a few rough patches in recent seasons, but 2022 was a return to form. He hopes to continue where he left off with command and pitch location as the 2023 season gets underway.
“I felt we were good last year pitching in games back in Japan," Fujinami said. "I hope to carry that over here to the states, and hopefully I’ll do well.”