Foreign ballplayers in Japan don't much like it, but they are often referred to as "suketto" in Japanese. The term means helper and it more than implies the hired hands from North America are not necessarily being counted on to lead their team but rather to temporarily "help" the fan-favorite local stars win some games and maybe even a pennant.
Two of the foreigners playing here this season are doing just that, playing the role of suketto in the true sense of the word. Left fielders Alex Ramirez of the Yakult Swallows and Pedro Valdes of the Fukuoka Daiei Hawks have been in their respective teams' starting lineups almost every day, and chances are high the pair could be "suketto-ing" against each other in this year's Japan Series beginning Oct. 20.
Venezuelan Ramirez has played in all but two of Yakult's 115 games through Sunday, posting statistics that rank about average among Swallows starting players. As of Sept. 10, he was hitting .277 with 23 home runs and 72 runs batted in, and that is right about where he expected to be, according to his own predictions made a month ago.
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