The Panda is living amongst the Tigers in Osaka.
At least that's how the Hanshin Tigers and their fans refer to the team's newest addition, first baseman Jason Rogers. When it's not "Panda," his nickname, it's "Rogers," and the East Point, Georgia, native wonders, somewhat jokingly, if anyone even knows his first name. Then again, he's still learning all of theirs, not to mention how to pronounce names comprised of sounds so foreign to him.
It was only July 1 that the Tigers signed Rogers to help in the pursuit of their first Central League pennant since 2005 and first Japan Series title since 1985. The 29-year-old former Pittsburgh Pirates infielder was playing for that team's Triple-A affiliate in Indianapolis a few weeks ago. Now he's getting used to life on the other side of the world.