U.S.A.
February 2, 2015
THE ASIAN REPORTER n Page 9
Coco: Potentially China’s next Li Na
Marlins finalize $2-million,
one-year deal with Ichiro Suzuki
Continued from page 4
MIAMI (AP) — Ichiro Suzuki has passed
his physical and finalized a $2-million,
one-year contract with the Miami Marlins.
The Marlins made the announcement
late last month. His deal includes $2.8
million in performance bonuses based on
plate appearances: $400,000 apiece for 300
and each additional 50 through 600.
Suzuki signed the deal in his native
Japan. A news conference was held with
five Marlins executives present, including
president David Samson, president of
baseball operations Michael Hill, and
general manager Dan Jennings.
The 41-year-old Suzuki, a 10-time
All-Star and 10-time Gold Glove winner, is
expected to be the team’s fourth outfielder
behind Giancarlo Stanton, Christian
Yelich, and Marcell Ozuna.
“We are thrilled to have Ichiro Suzuki in
a Marlins uniform,” Marlins owner Jeffrey
Loria said in a statement. “He is the
ultimate professional on and off the field,
and will make an excellent addition to our
ballclub.”
Suzuki is the first Japanese player to
sign with the Marlins. He hit .284 and stole
15 bases for the New York Yankees last
season.
A GREAT CATCH. Ichiro Suzuki poses for pho-
tos with his new jersey for the Miami Marlins, in To-
kyo. Making a rare appearance at a press conference
in his native Japan, Suzuki said, “When I met (Miami)
team executives yesterday, I felt incredible enthusi-
asm, so I wanted to respond to their enthusiasm, and
I believe that is something I have been looking for
the last two years.” (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)
Suzuki is a career .317 hitter in the
majors and a two-time American League
(AL) batting champion. The former AL
MVP has 2,844 career hits.
OREGON KOREAN SCHOOL
7650 SW 81st Ave., Portland, OR 97223
NOTICE OF NONDISCRIMINATORY
POLICY AS TO STUDENTS
The Oregon Korean School admits students of any
race, color, national and ethnic origin to all the
rights, privileges, programs, and activities generally
accorded or made available to students at the school.
It does not discriminate on the basis of race, color,
national and ethnic origin in administration of its
educational policies, admissions policies, scholarship
and loan programs, and athletic and other school-
administered programs.
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Difficulty
HARD
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level: Hard
#19914
# 6
Instructions: Fill in the grid so that the digits 1
through 9 appear one time each in every row, col-
umn, and 3x3 box.
Solution to
last week’s
puzzle
Puzzle #81254 (Medium)
All solutions available at
<www.sudoku.com>.
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After Xu’s loss in singles at the
Australian Open junior tournament, she
played a girls’ doubles match against one
of the homegrown players, 16-year-old
Zheng Wushuang, who trains at the 1123
Junior Tennis Academy in Beijing and is
now China’s second-ranked junior girl. Xu
and her Australian partner Sara Tomic
won that match, but lost in straight sets in
the semifinals.
Sitting courtside, Yi Ping, the founder of
the academy, said she has only taken on
seven of China’s most promising players in
order to maximize the resources she can
provide them. One of China’s largest
insurance companies, Ping An, is the
academy’s main sponsor.
“With the academy becoming more
famous, there are more junior players who
want to come in,” Yi said. “But we want to
see the great potential in players and
decide if we want to have them. We want to
have all the top junior players in our club.”
Xu, who now has a Belgian coach,
believes her father made the right decision
for her development.
“I think it’s very different than going
down the traditional Chinese route,” Xu
said. “I got a lot of good experience from
that time (in Florida).”
GREAT AT EIGHT. China’s rising talent Xu
Shilin makes a backhand return during the junior girls’
doubles semifinal at the Australian Open tennis cham-
pionship in Melbourne, Australia. Xu’s progress so far
has been attributed to her decision to train at top pri-
vate academies in Florida. (AP Photo/Shuji Kajiyama)
Rhoads said Xu is already fielding
questions from the media about becoming
the next Li Na. But he said it’s going to
take some time before Xu is anywhere
close. Li won her first major at the French
Open in 2011 at the age of 29.
“I think if the Chinese fans and the
media are patient, they’re going to see
something special,” he said. “Li Na didn’t
hit her stride until she was 24, 25 years
old.”
And although she admires Li’s career,
Xu doesn’t want to be compared to anyone.
“I respect her a lot. I like her a lot. But I
just want to be myself, obviously.”