PawSox' Abad has experienced both sides of foreign relations
01:00 AM EDT on Monday, August 25, 2003
BY STEVEN KRASNER
Journal Sports Writer
"Some guys were eating the same thing 10 days in a row because that's
all they knew how to order."
ANDY ABAD
Andy Abad is a professional baseball player.
But in his career, which dates to 1993, Abad has been a cultural
ambassador, an interpreter, a restaurant critic and a world traveler,
putting him on several sides of the issue of foreign languages in
baseball.
Abad, who is in his second tour of duty with the Pawtucket Red Sox, is a
son of Cuban immigrants. Despite growing up in Palm Beach, Fla., Abad is
fluent in Spanish, which, combined with his easy-going manner and his
professionalism, has made him an important teammate and de facto coach
for thankful managers.
"I can communicate with all the Latin players, Spanish-speaking players
from the Dominican, Puerto Rico, Mexico and Venezuela," said Abad. "The
language barrier, on top of the cultural differences, make it tough for
them."
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As the son of Cuban immigrants, Pawtucket's Andy Abad has served as an interpreter and consultant for Latin players. But he found himself needing such help when he played in Japan.
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Abad's communication skills came in particularly handy when he was in
the low minors. By the time a player has made it to Triple A, most
Spanish-speaking players have had some kind of schooling in English in
the rookie and Class A leagues, but back in the early to mid-1990s, that
wasn't necessarily the case.
So Abad found himself helping out.
"I would order for them at Burger King or Taco Bell," said Abad. "Some
guys were eating the same thing 10 days in a row because that's all they
knew how to order. No one wants to eat the same thing 10 days in a row.
And when they'd ask me questions like, 'What does this mean?' or 'What
does that mean?', I'd help them out."
Abad's assistance was gladly offered and accepted on the field, too.
"I'd help out coaches and managers. If I was playing first base and we
had a Latin pitcher on the mound, I would go in to the mound when the
manager or coach wanted to talk to the pitcher to help out. I've done
that several times in my career," he said.
The language tables were turned for Abad in 2000 when he headed to Japan
to play for the Osaka Kintetsu Buffaloes.
"When I got to Japan, I remembered how much trouble a Spanish-speaking
player can have when he just comes over to the States," said Abad. "The
language barrier can really be difficult as far as getting by every day.
You try to be able to get around from place to place, and eat without
having to depend on anybody.
"To order sometimes, you know those places where they have food in the
window that looks like it's frozen or stuffed by some taxidermist? Well
there might have been a mound of spaghetti and meatballs there, and when
the waitress came to take my order, I'd take her to the window and point
to what I wanted."
Abad came to have a better understanding of why, in this country, it is
common to find Latin players gathering together in the clubhouse before
and after games, chatting in Spanish, appearing to be a clique.
"(Ex-Soxer) Lou Merloni was in Japan when I was, and when we'd play each
other, the first thing we'd do is get together and ask, 'Where we going
to dinner tonight?' We'd have dinner and trade stories. You build up a
lot of stuff inside you because you can't communicate with anybody over
there. If your wife isn't over there and there is no one you're
comfortable enough to talk to, it's very difficult," said Abad.
