Ah, Japan baseball. The refuge for the old, the infirmed and the Mr. 3000's of the world. (RIP, Bernie.) And now, it could be the home of Omar Vizquel, should no American team decide to retain his services next year.
"If I cannot find something satisfying here, there is a possibility I might end up in Japan playing ball," Vizquel said Friday. He would not be the first Venezuelan gaijin in the Japan Leagues, but he would be the most famous.
"I've played here long enough in America," Vizquel. "I've seen every team, every ballpark. I think it would be great to experience a new league and something new. I played in Japan in 2000 on the major-league all-star tour and I found it very cool - good baseball, good fans. Why not? It's a new culture."
I back this move, although I don't know how much I believe him when he states that it's because he's "seen everything".
Sure, that's a nice way of saying that he knows he won't get re-signed and it's entirely possible that the Giants will choose to discard him as they attempt to move their average offensive age below 48, but the reality is that going to Japan to play is not something he's choosing to do actively. Of course, he still has plenty of glove left, even if his offense is lacking, so it's hard to see him not contributing overseas.
