I wanted the challenge of competing against the best players in the world.

I've always prided myself in not reveling in past accomplishments and focusing on future achievement, instead. That's been my career motto.

I had a dream. And I made that dream come true.

As professionals we have a responsibility of providing a good show for the fans. Getting hits and home runs is what they want to see.

Baseball has been the greatest things in my life, but the cameras and the media surrounding baseball have not been fun. It's unnecessary. How many times do they see me stretch? How many times do they see me walk? It is a big concern. If it affected the team in a negative way, I don't know what I would do.

Chicks who dig home runs aren't the ones who appeal to me. I think there's sexiness in infield hits because they require technique. I'd rather impress the chicks with my technique than with my brute strength. Then, every now and then, just to show I can do that, too, I might flirt a little by hitting one out.

The Japanese have a strong tendency to suppress their own feelings. That's the Japanese character. They kill their own emotions.