Jason McAdams passes along this fascinating article on how Ichiro and Johjima became close teammates. Ichrio didn’t think it was going to happen:

“I only had a bad impression of him,” Ichiro says, laughing heartily as he explains what he now considers a long-standing misperception. “When we played against each other in Japan, as an opponent, I found him brash and cocky. Honestly, I was upset when I heard the Mariners had signed him. I thought, ‘What?’ I didn’t think we could coexist here.”

In fact, they’ve become very close and now hold deep respect for each other.