Japanese Put the Arbitrary in Baseball Wage Arbitration

What happens when a Japanese major league baseball player wants to be paid considerably more than his team has offered?

Eric Talmadge of the Associated Press reported that Hiromitsu Ochiai, Japanese baseball’s only three-time triple crown winner and its first arbitration applicant, is asking $2.007 million per year from the Chunichi Dragons, who have offered him a record $1.69 million. No other Japanese player makes more than $1.54 million.

But before anyone gets the idea that Japanese arbitration mirrors its American counterpart, consider this: The three-person committee that will decide Ochiai’s salary consists of Commissioner Ichiro Yoshikuni and the heads of Japan’s two major leagues.

And what if Ochiai disagrees with the committee’s decision? Simple: League rules would force him to retire.

Add Ochiai: At his first arbitration hearing last week, Ochiai, 37, said: “Pro baseball is the business of selling dreams. I don’t think it’s an unreasonable figure.”

Granted, his request is less than half Roger Clemens’ U.S. major league high of $5.38 million per year. But Ochiai said he was eager to bring Japanese players’ salaries closer to those of the two foreigners each team is allowed on its roster. Ochiai noted that former Montreal Expo outfielder Warren Cromartie earned $2.3 million with the Tokyo Giants last year.

But Commissioner Yoshikuni said: “There are examples of pay differences between the United States and Japan in many occupations. Comparing the two isn’t appropriate.”

Trivia time: Three times since 1978, one of the Big West Conference’s current head basketball coaches has defeated the team that eventually won the NCAA championship that season. Name him.

And you would be sued: A Seattle rock band calls itself Mookie Blaylock, after the New Jersey Net guard.

Bassist Jeff Ament told the New York Times: “We needed a name to tour, and it sounded cool. If we were Magic Johnson, it would be too typical.”

Maybe two times: Daytona 500 champion Ernie (Swervin’) Irvan earned his nickname with an aggressive style that has put him in more crashes than winner’s circles since he became a regular in the NASCAR Winston Cup series in 1989.

Said Irvan: “I like that nickname. It beats ‘Bonehead,’ and that’s what they called me one time.”

Cold shot: Tony Kornheiser of the Washington Post, in a column on the Capitals’ belligerent forward, John Kordic, wrote: “If you aren’t good enough to make the majors as an everyday player, they advise you to concentrate on fielding. In the NBA, they steer you to rebounding and playing defense. In the NFL, they put you on special teams. In hockey, they send you to Angelo Dundee.”

Trivia answer: Jerry Pimm of UC Santa Barbara. While coaching at Utah, his teams defeated Kentucky in 1978 and Louisville in 1980. In 1990, UCSB defeated Nevada Las Vegas.

Quotebook: Former Atlanta Hawk guard Mike Glenn, now a color commentator on NBA telecasts, after a recent game: “The fans in Portland are like an arena full of Bill Laimbeers. They complain on every call.”