The ability of new Seattle Mariners' catcher Kenji Johjima to communicate efficiently with his pitchers will be an ongoing question, analyzed as the season progresses.
He left little question about his offensive punch on opening day.
The rookie, the first catcher from Japan to start a major league game, homered for his first hit in Seattle's 5-4 loss to the Los Angeles Angels on Monday.
Johjima lined a 2-2 fastball from Angels starter and last year's American League Cy Young winner Bartolo Colon over the right-field fence and into the first row during the fifth inning. The homer was estimated at 363 feet and was Seattle's first run of the season. The Mariners scored three times in the inning.
Johjima pointed to the sky as he crossed home plate and the scoreboard flashed "The Deuce is Loose" regarding the No. 2 on his uniform.
Mariners' manager Mike Hargrove said he hadn't yet seen that type of opposite-field power from his catcher. The homer even caught Johjima off guard.
"Actually, I'm very surprised," he said through a translator.
It was a positive start for a position that was nothing but frustration in Seattle last year. The Mariners shuffled through seven different catchers, who combined to hit a total of 10 home runs for the entire 2005 season.
Johjima averaged 30 homers in his last five Japanese seasons.
"I can't say I'm very satisfied with today's result," Johjima said.
Last season, four players homered for their first major league hits. Jeremy Hermida of Florida was the most recent, connecting for a pinch-hit grand slam in his first at-bat on Aug. 31, 2005, against St. Louis. The last Mariner was Greg Dobbs on Sept. 8, 2004, against Cleveland.
In his first at-bat, Johjima swung at the first pitch and grounded out to short. He was hit by a pitch in the sixth inning and flew out to right in the eighth.
The day before the opener, Johjima admitted to a case of the nerves about his first major league game. He showed poise in every aspect -- from the pregame introductions to his handling of four different pitchers -- with every step analyzed by the watchful eye of the Japanese media. Mariners officials said there were 75 to 100 credentials given to Japanese media for Monday's opener.
"Maybe I'm stupid, but I don't pay attention to the historical part," Hargrove said. "I know it is. I get that. But my main concern is how well we do and him catching for us gives us a chance to be good. He gives us leadership and defense we didn't have last year."
The biggest question surrounding Johjima is the language barrier and his ability to have open lines of communication with his pitching staff. Angels' manager Mike Scioscia, who caught 13 years for the Los Angeles Dodgers, believes the Japanese tradition of a strong pitcher-catcher relationship will help ease the transition of the Mariners' pitchers to Johjima.
"That pitcher-catcher communication is essential and I know those guys are schooled very deeply on that in Japan and I think that transition will probably be a little easier," Scioscia said.
Johjima did appear crossed up a couple of times. Reliever Rafael Soriano unleashed a wild pitch on his first delivery in the seventh inning, and Johjima went diving toward J.J. Putz's inside fastball in the ninth that Orlando Cabrera hit for a two-run single, and gave the Angels a 5-3 lead.
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