Sugano on the Grapefruit League mound today, Hardy's take on Holliday

SARASOTA, Fla. – The next wave of Tomoyuki Sugano hysteria crashes on the shore today with his Grapefruit League debut against the Pirates. Protect yourselves at all times.

The first game of catch, first bullpen session and first live batting practice session were recorded and plastered all over social media. The Japanese media that tracks his every movement didn’t miss a single minute of it. The local beat crew fell into step. The anticipation was palpable.

Pitching in Bradenton isn’t the most ideal location from a media standpoint. The press box space is limited, to put it generously. Reporters who cover the Pirates usually set up in the workroom. That leaves a free-for-all to occupy one of the three stools in the back row.

You can’t call it “standing room only” because there’s no room, though standing might improve your view.

Statcast data is available at LECOM Park, which enhances today’s coverage. Sugano throws six different pitches and tracking is made easier. Let’s be able to identify them and attach numbers. And give me exit velocities from the hitters.

Sugano will go one or two innings depending on his pitch count and it’s going to be a big deal. Blown way out of proportion, of course. But it's an event.

Koji Uehara was the first Japanese player signed by the Orioles. Sugano can become the third to play for them after reliever Shintaro Fujinami. Tsuyoshi Wada never pitched for the Orioles after signing a two-year, $8.15 million contract and undergoing ligament-reconstructive surgery on his left elbow. They declined his $5 million option for 2014.

Uehara visited the Sarasota complex yesterday and posed for photos with Brian Roberts and Adam Jones. He stopped by the press box and sat in the chair next to me, both of us unaware of the pending reunion. The recognition happened almost simultaneously.

I thought at first that he was a neatly dressed, good-looking member of the television media. I likened him in my head to a Japanese Mark Viviano. And I wasn’t totally wrong. Uehara is working as an analyst for the Japan Broadcasting Corporation known as NHK.

Of course, Sugano’s name came up our conversation.

“He’s good, very good,” Uehara said in English.

Uehara and Sugano were teammates with the Yomiuri Giants in 2018 and 2019. According to Uehara, Sugano said his splitter will be his best pitch in the U.S., compared to his slider in Japan.

Whatever Sugano pulls out of his tool belt, Uehara expects him to be successful and for his popularity to soar, as it did in Japan.

“He’s famous,” Uehara said, smiling.

More famous than you?

“More,” he replied. “Koji, no.”

Happy to reconnect with Koji? Yes.

* The Orioles have an impressive double play combination in camp and it’s their guest coaches.

Brian Roberts joined J.J. Hardy yesterday, the former second baseman and shortstop on the field together.

I asked Hardy for his opinion of the young infielders.

“Pretty special, pretty special,” he replied. “Super athletes, willing to learn more, willing to try new things. Very coachable, which is fun because you give them one little thing that maybe, ‘Hey this works for me,’ and you can see them trying it instantly and picking up on it instantly.”

Hardy notices the changes in Jackson Holliday from last year’s camp, which also was the three-time Gold Glove winner’s first as a coach. Holliday was learning second base last spring. He seems quicker now in drills distributing the ball to shortstop on double plays.

“He looks more comfortable for sure,” Hardy said. “I think last year when I saw him it was like he hadn’t done much at second base at all. And now he’s looking a lot more comfortable.

“Example today, talking about a little pointer on something, B-Rob gave him something on double play feeds and it was like one ground ball later, it looked amazing. And I’m like, ‘Golly, to be able just to do it like that that quick is awesome.’ Pretty special.”