So far so good on the performance front for Seiya Suzuki, but what about on the whole adjusting to a new team in a new country thing? How is Suzuki fitting in with the Cubs?
If the frequent smiles didn’t tell you enough already, Ian Happ is here to tell you just how enjoyable Seiya Suzuki is:
Ian Happ wants to be best friends with new #Cubs teammate Seiya Suzuki.
"He's the happiest dude in the dugout," Happ says.
Listen to full interview with @dan_bernstein: https://t.co/Ir4JqC4yZK pic.twitter.com/XE8adEhX0K
— 670 The Score (@670TheScore) April 11, 2022
Happ and Suzuki, it turns out, were born just six days apart, so the friendship is a natural fit. They would’ve been pals in school.
Bonus note there from Happ on Suzuki’s impressive defense in right field. Specifically, Happ cites that Suzuki had to play through three very different weather days at Wrigley Field – different wind, different light, different temperatures – and he believes Suzuki performed really well right away. I would add, too, that right field at Wrigley is one of the tougher right fields anyway, with the foul territory reducing to zero at the very same point where the wall extends out of your reach, and with the deep well in the corner that plays super funky. There will probably be more adjustments there, but so far, nice praise from Suzuki’s new best friend, Ian Happ.