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DUNEDIN, Fla. — Count Yusei Kikuchi among those likely to be pleased to see recently acquired designated hitter Daniel Vogelbach when he arrives at Blue Jays spring training headquarters.
Their relationship extends to when they were teammates in Seattle and Vogelbach was a key figure in welcoming Kikuchi to the team and also helping him with the language barrier.
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Kikuchi never forgot the gesture.
After spending eight years pitching professionally in Japan, baseball in the U.S. and especially the culture was foreign to Kikuchi.
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The two became fast friends and when Kikuchi’s son Leo was born in July 2019. Kikuchi and his wife Rumi decided to honour Vogelbach by choosing Daniel as their child’s middle name.
That quickly evolved into the big DH being known as “Uncle Vogey” in the Kikuchi household. Vogelbach’s signing was made official on Sunday and he’ll be expected to reunite with his starting pitcher pal this week in Dunedin, Fla.
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Kikuchi’s grasp of English is much stronger now to the point where regular dialogue with his fellow pitchers and coaching staff is smooth and productive.
“Everyone has a wealth of experience in this rotation and I really look up to them,” Kikuchi said. “We talk a lot among the five of us and that really helps.”
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