Ex-Red Sox Ramirez begins next phase of career with Kochi

TOKYO — Manny Ramirez is set to begin the next chapter of his baseball odyssey by playing for the Kochi Fighting Dogs of Japan's independent Shikoku Island League.

Ramirez is no stranger to farflung outposts, having put in a brief stint in Taiwan in 2013. But fans will be curious to see how the former major leaguer, known for a quirky personality, adjusts to life in small-town Japan.

Kochi is the capital city of Kochi Prefecture on the Island of Shikoku. The city has an estimated population of 340,000.

“I've always wanted to play in Japan,” the 44-year-old Dominican said in a comment posted on the team's web site. “I really appreciate the opportunity the Kochi team is giving me to continue my career. I'm really looking forward to playing in Japan.”

The Fighting Dogs open their regular season April 4 against the Tokushima Indigo Socks. In a pre-season game Thursday, Ramirez was the designated hitter and had two hits in five atbats and one RBI in a 3-2 win over the Hideo Nomo baseball club.

Ramirez signed a contract in January. While financial terms were not released, the former Boston Red Sox star's agreement has some unusual perks.

According to YakyuDB.com, Ramirez will get all the sushi he can eat, be chauffeured around town in a Mercedes Benz and will be put up an expensive hotel. But it won't all be glamorous. The Fighting Dogs will play many of their home games at the 6,000-seat Kochi Municipal Stadium. With an all-dirt infield, it's typical of many small-town baseball stadiums in Japan: clean but low on modern amenities one would find in urban stadiums.

And the city of Kochi is a far cry from the bright lights of Tokyo or Osaka.

The Visit Kochi website describes the prefecture as a “hidden gem that is definitely off the beaten track. It's one of those places that lots of people say they want to go to but never really make it.”

There aren't a lot of entertainment options in Kochi, so Ramirez may want to take in some of the local sites on his days off.

In between games, Ramirez could go see the Sugi no Osugi, the tallest cedar tree in Japan. Designated as an important natural monument, Sugi no Osugi is said to be more than 3,000 years old.

Another option would be the Farmer's Clock Tower. According to the Visit Kochi website, “The Farmer's Clock has told the hour to farmers working in their fields far away. It still stands amid a rural landscape, and is loved by many people.”

In terms of the weather, Ramirez had better get his umbrella ready. Kochi has a very wet, humid subtropical climate, receiving twice as much rainfall as Shikoku's other main cities Matsuyama and Takamatsu. It is also the most typhoon-prone of Japan's cities owing to its location directly exposed to the Pacific Ocean from which the storms enter the country, and has twice received more than 50 centimeters (20 inches) of rainfall in a day from a typhoon.

Ramirez finished his 19-season major league career with a .312 batting average, 555 home runs and 1,831 RBIs. A 12-time All-Star, Ramirez helped the Red Sox win World Series titles in 2004 and '07, the first for the franchise since 1918.

Ramirez was suspended for 50 games in 2009 while with the Los Angeles Dodgers for using a banned substance. He retired in 2011 rather than face a 100game suspension after testing positive for a performanceenhancing substance.

It may not be all hard work for Ramirez, who could have time to take in the sites in Kochi. YakyuDB.com also reports that practices are “apparently optional.” behind team champion Tiverton, and – in the process – qualified for the New England Interscholastic Spirit Championships, slated for 10:30 a.m., Saturday back at the PCTA arena.

“The routine the girls did was flawless,” stated Mills, herself a former SRA cheerleader before graduating in 2008. “When they were going through it, my assistants (Taylor Duarte and Kat Marchese) and I were crawling on the floor because we were so excited; the girls were hitting everything.

“We were all crying when they finished, it was so good,” she added. “It was amazing from where we started after football season.”

Mills mentioned that once that campaign ended in November, “we lost some of the girls for different reasons, and I ended up with only 13. Still, at states, the team did an incredible routine; it improved 100-fold, from their stunting to their tumbling to their dancing and – honestly – their teamwork. They were so in synch with each other.

“That was the first time all season that they hit that routine (lasting 2:30) perfectly.”

Burrillville gained third in the competition, so it also landed a bid to the New England regional event, while Narragansett placed fourth and Exeter/West Greenwich fifth. (The top three squads in each division qualify).

Mills indicated that 11 athletes took part in the routine, as the remaining two were alternates. It began with a schoolbased cheer, then grew into tumbles, stunts, pyramids and dancing.

That first workout drew approximately 20 girls, but that number would dwindle over the course of the campaign, though Mills and her staff kept mentoring the kids, trying to keep their spirit and concentration levels high.

“The most you can put on a mat at the same time is 20, and the least four,” she said. “Having an odd number of girls makes it more difficult because sections (of performances), like pyramids, are tougher; you’ll have five girls in one and six in another.

“The big thing we had to overcome was losing some team members; we had to rearrange stunt groups, and it takes a lot of time and hard work for new, incoming girls to pick up assorted routines. It takes more time to develop trust and become synchronized.

“I honestly can’t believe we won it,” she continued. “Over the past four years, these girls have progressed in every aspect of cheering. Even back in January, we looked pretty good, but we were still having to make so many (roster moves). They overcame all of that.

“I have to say I was more nervous as a head coach than I was as a competitive cheerleader. You put so much time and effort into the team, working on all sorts on things. Once you get to a competition, it’s all up to them. I can’t do anything but stand there, watch and pray.

“I have to congratulate them all. They’re the ones who put in all the work, and now we’re going to the New Englands!”

Team members include seniors Alexia Amaral, Arabella DiSanto, Jenny Espinal and Cecily Leblanc; juniors Lexie Bolano, Sky Carron, Bridget Malloy and Madalyn Pianka; sophomores Jasmyn Renzi and Alexis Washington; and frosh Victoria Biagetti, Ava Librizzi and Adrianna Sepe.

For the record, the Mount St. Charles/North Smithfield Co-op team finished third in the state Large Division meet, so also will travel to the PCTA field house for the regional competition on Saturday morning.