Kosuke Fukudome May Struggle His First Year in Chicago

Daisuke Matsuzaka struggled at times last year, pitching in front of a media frenzy in Boston. He now admits that all the attention and the differences between Japanese and American baseball did bother him.

Thus far, Kosuke Fukudome, the Cubs new right fielder, is suggesting that will not bother him. And perhaps he is different. But he may not yet realize what is in store for him. Cubs fans have a reputation of being a forgiving bunch.

Logic dictates that in order to be loyal to a team with such a losing history one would need to be. But recent close encounters with success, specifically 2003, has whetted the winning appetite of the Cub fan and they have been brutal in their treatment of some players when things aren’t going well.

Last year, ace pitcher Carlos Zambrano felt the wrath of Cubs fans following several poor outings. So, as much as fans seem to be in love with Fukudome right now, if the Cubs don’t win and especially if Kosuke struggles, there may be more to deal with than he bargained for. After all, he is signed for four years and $48 million dollars, so it's not as if the Cubs can pawn him off if he struggles. He clearly is tied to the hip with the Cubs for awhile.

On the flip side, what better place than Chicago to do well, as we absolutely deify our sports stars. Many of the Super Bowl champion ’85 Bears are still making money off of that single achievement more than twenty years later. Ditka could run for Mayor in this town. Ernie Banks is still Mr. Cub.

But when we turn on a player, we sure do turn on a player. Sammy Sosa was a fan darling when he was hitting 60 homers a year, but after his corked bat episode and ensuing struggles, fans couldn’t wait to run him out of town.   

Getting back to the most recent example of a Japanese import struggling, Dice-K as he is known, had to get used to all the new things not only associated with MLB, but with life in America.  The language, food, and culture was different. He had to get used to the travel, the umpires, the ballparks.  The schedule was longer and featured fewer days off.

In Japan, the season would be nearing the end by August. However, the pennant chase between the Yanks and Sox was just heating up by then in 2007, and Matsuzaka was clearly tired. The same could happen to Fukudome.

On the other hand, Ichiro hit .350 in his first season in the bigs. So it’s not impossible that K-Fuk could do well right from the start. But it’s a struggle, and expectations need to be managed accordingly. Hideki Matsui hit just 16 homers for the Yankees in his first season in the league, following a 51-homer season in Japan the year before.

K-Fuk is said to be a blend of Ichiro’s speed and defense combined with Matsui’s power, with a selective eye at the plate, a trait the Cubs so desperately need. But he will turn 31 years old in April and is coming off of elbow surgery.

So far, so good. In six at-bats he hasn’t swung and missed yet. And he says through his translator that he’s having fun.

But it’s a long year, with everything new, so as much as Cubs fans are tired of waiting, patience with Fukudome may just well be the prescription.