Shinjo began his playing career with the Hanshin Tigers, and moved to the United States to play in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the New York Mets. He is the second Japanese-born position player to play an MLB game, as well as the first in the National League. In 2002, he joined the San Francisco Giants and was the first Japanese-born player to appear in the World Series. He had a second stint with the Mets in 2003, and returned to Japan to play for the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters, with whom he won the Japan Series in his final season.
Career
Born in Tsushima, Nagasaki Prefecture, Japan and raised in Minami-ku, Fukuoka, he played for the Hanshin Tigers in Japan from 1990 until 2000, then for Major League Baseball's New York Mets and San Francisco Giants. In 2002, he became the first Japan-born player to play in the World Series, where he went 1 for 6 with three strikeouts. He ended his three-year stint in American baseball by being demoted to AAA after hitting .193 for the first half of the 2003 season. He returned to Japan and played for the Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters from 2004 until 2006. He is known for his flamboyance, colorful wristbands, dyed hair, and a unique hop as he catches the ball. His uniqueness has endeared him to baseball fans and has made him one of the most popular players in the Japanese leagues despite not being in the echelon of elite active players. In fact, his popularity was what kept him off the bench during his stint with the Tigers when manager Katsuya Nomura tried to turn him into a pitcher in the rotation rather than risk his team with his mediocre play.[1]
Shinjo ended his career in storybook fashion. Playing for years on losing teams in Hanshin and despite playing in the 2002 World Series alongside Giants legend Barry Bonds, Shinjo showed emotion and shed tears as his final game crowned him a champion, as he was a member of the Fighters squad that won their first Japan Series title since 1962 with a 4 games to 1 series win over the Chunichi Dragons. As Shinjo took the field for the top of the ninth inning in the final game, he was given a standing ovation from the home crowd. Before the inning began, he was visibly emotional. Although the final play was only close to him, (left fielderHichori Morimoto caught the final ball) the cameras showed only Shinjo's dramatic reaction. Traditionally, the players toss the manager in the air for series wins first, but the players tossed Shinjo in the air first instead of manager Trey Hillman.[2]
Shinjo is now a television celebrity in Japan as well as a model for his own line of clothing. He has also won the maximum 10,000,000 JPY prize in a celebrity edition of the Japanese version of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire, Kuizu $ Mirionea.[3]
In October 2021, the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters announced that Shinjo would be the manager for the upcoming season.[4] With his hiring, this gave him the nickname, "Big Boss" or "Big Boss Shinjo" by fans, due to his celebrity status and his fun, over the top, unorthodox clubhouse atmosphere. He was also hired by the Fighters to replace longtime manager Hideki Kuriyama, who became the manager of Samurai Japan at the end of the season. The success of the nickname led him to register himself as BIGBOSS, and on March 24, 2022, just a few days before Opening Day, NPB officially approved BIGBOSS as his registered name for the 2022 season.[5]
During the 2022 season, Shinjo became well-known for entering the field in a home game against the Saitama Seibu Lions in a hoverbike.[6] He also entered his first ever home game as manager, as SB Nation described it, "straight out of wrestling".[7] He also showed up to spring training in a three-wheeled motorcycle. He also has his own jersey, with his registered name replacing the nameplate of the Fighters.
When the club made the jump to Es Con Field Hokkaido, Shinjo announced the partial retirement of his "Big Boss" moniker at the club's final game against the Chiba Lotte Marines at the Sapporo Dome. He also designed a new alternate uniform for the Fighters, known as "New Age Games" (officially known as "NEW AGE GAMES produced by SHINJO").[8] These jerseys used a black, red, and gold color scheme with a V on the center, standing for victory.[9] Some fans, mostly Americans, had noticed its similarity to the Vancouver Canucks' infamous Flying V jerseys from the 1980s.
