Talk:Hideki Irabu

Death
Does anyone know why he committed suicide? Regardless of what people think of him, he was too young to die. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 173.63.189.183 (talk) 07:36, 29 July 2011 (UTC)

Irabu a flop?
Does anyone know why Irabu was really a flop? I too remember it being a big deal when he came to the majors, but...well... I forget why. Was it because he was one of the earlier Japanese players, and playing for the all important Yankees?

Part of it was the whole Yankee Mystique. But he was an extrodinary pitcher in Japan, often being compared to Roger Clemens. He was predicted to be even better than Hideo Nomo was at the time of his arrival, but he just had a hard time adjusting to the majors. He also had some personal problems, like self esteem issues (from childhood: father was an american serviceman in Japan) plus some stints with drinking. It's a shame. He did have talent. Morisato_40

As I recall he was a real fireballed, reaching up to 103MPH on the radar gun. He was supposidly the hardest thrower this side of the galaxy, and they expect him to just blow everyone away with a fastball no one would be able to hit. He lacked the conditioning/variety of pitches/control and as a result had a fairly high walk-to-strikeout ratio, especially for a strikeout pitcher like him.

I seem to remember him throwing a baseball cap on the pitcher's mound and Tommy LaSorda scolding him about disrespecting the team uniform. That would have happened in LA? He did have a harder time integrating than Hideki Nomo. Nomo did study English in Tokyo before leaving for the US. Some people expected Irabu to be more Americanized due to his father being a US serviceman, but he didn't make it in terms of connecting with fans. 222.225.135.199 (talk) 23:32, 16 September 2008 (UTC)qennedy

"Fat pussy toad"
As I recall, Steinbrenner's infamous put-down of Irabu cause quite a dilemma for sportswriters, since the modifier he used for "toad" was not the vulgar term for female genitals, but rather rhymed with "fussy" (i.e., suggesting he was full of pus). That's not a commonly used word, and there's no widely accepted way of spelling it. I think most went with "puss-y". I'll try to update the entry, but I can't find any references.

1998 World Series
He was a member of that team, correct? The one written section of the article says yes, but the side section only lists 1999. Could someone that knows what they're doing fix that? I can only do the simplest of things on here :-) Thanks!  Kjscotte34 (talk) 19:39, 5 January 2010 (UTC)

Hanging
I don't know why people keep removing the mention that he died via hanging. There were tons of sources that said as much yesterday and today the coroner has confirmed it. 68.81.180.171 (talk) 00:59, 30 July 2011 (UTC)
 * I see it in reliable sources, so if I see it removed, I will reinsert it. – Muboshgu (talk) 01:07, 30 July 2011 (UTC)

Cleanup?
I would gladly fix the article if more specific instructions were given. --Coingeek (talk) 01:12, 7 May 2012 (UTC)

External links modified
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2021 update?
This article feels honestly a bit over dramatic at times, painting him as this figure who was reviled by the New York media, when I (admittedly, not a New Yorker) am hearing about him for the first time. It also mentions a lot in the first paragraphs, which may be better off in other suggestions. I can also clean this up if I get any pointers. Adostaler (talk) 06:41, 13 August 2021 (UTC)


 * The word inebriated really sounds distasteful I’m not usually like this with what people say but give the man peace. 199.45.130.143 (talk) 09:22, 12 November 2023 (UTC)
 * There's a lot more info on the Japanese wiki, including that the charges for assault was dropped when it was later revealed that the store in question was attempting to skim Irabu's credit card. Also, the same cited source and a further section states that his dislike of the media caused his poor reputation with them, but that his fellow players said he was a good person who looked after other players, and was popular with fans. 97.146.47.188 (talk) 04:46, 18 December 2023 (UTC)