Former Yomiuri Giant Shun Yamaguchi Returns to the U.S., Using His Father’s Chanko to Rewrite His Unfinished MLB Story

Unlike many shops run by former professional baseball players, there are no uniforms or autographs from his playing days on display. Although a sumo ranking chart is hung up, the interior décor is simple.

“I don’t want to use my name recognition from my playing career as a selling point. I want to compete purely with flavor and service.”

So says Shun Yamaguchi (38), who played for DeNA and the Giants and recorded 66 wins and 112 saves in his pro baseball career. The interview took place at TANIARASHI, a chanko hot pot restaurant in Roppongi, Tokyo, where Yamaguchi is the owner. The shop is named in honor of his late father, Taniarashi, a former sumo wrestler. Yamaguchi continues (all comments below are his):

“It’s positioned as a sister store to Taniarashi, which my family has run back home in Nakatsu, Ōita. The seasoning is the mildly sweet Kyushu style, but I believed it would work in Tokyo as well. I opened in December 2022, right after retirement, but my mother and brother, who took over the main restaurant, were strongly opposed. They said, ‘Don’t take the restaurant business lightly,’ and ‘This isn’t a job you can do without full commitment.’

But I was serious. I convinced them by saying, ‘I’ll fund everything myself,’ and ‘I will take full responsibility.’ Finally they relented, saying, ‘If you’re that determined.’ In exchange, I asked for the recipe for the chanko broth and for tori-ten (a local Ōita fried chicken specialty), and managed to open the shop.”

The fact that Yamaguchi opened a chanko restaurant in Roppongi has already been featured in FRIDAY and other media. But what has rarely been reported is the deeper reason behind his choice to take on the restaurant business: the lingering frustration from his Major League stint, which Yamaguchi describes as the one regret of my baseball career.

“I think it was my own weakness.”

Yamaguchi’s peak came in 2019 with the Giants, when he posted 15 wins, 4 losses, and 188 strikeouts, earning the titles of most wins, best winning percentage, and strikeout leader. That offseason, he signed with the Toronto Blue Jays, achieving his long-awaited dream of playing in the Major Leagues in 2020.

“When I was called onto the mound in English during spring training, I got goosebumps. The fans welcomed me with a standing ovation. I was overwhelmed I will never forget that moment.”

But the dream did not last long.

“I was thrown off by the chaos caused by COVID-19. Just when I felt I was getting into shape through training, I’d be ordered to stay home again. Being stuck in a room, unable to play baseball, built up so much frustration. Everything just fell out of sync.

In my second year in MLB, I signed a minor league deal with the Giants (San Francisco), but I chose to return to Japan when my old team, the Yomiuri Giants, reached out to me. I’m grateful to them. But looking back, I think it was my own weakness—wanting to escape a difficult life. Even if I wasn’t getting results, maybe I should have kept grinding in the minors. I still regret that.”

His lingering regret from MLB has become one of the driving forces behind continuing his restaurant business.

“I had been thinking about my second career since around age 30. No matter how great a player is, the day will come when it’s over. When I thought about what I could do outside baseball, the thing that came to mind was my father’s chanko hot pot.

I don’t intend to keep the restaurant business limited to Japan. I’m confident it can succeed overseas. In fact, this July I opened an izakaya in Las Vegas featuring yakitori. Eventually, I want to turn it into a chanko restaurant, using this shop as a foothold for continuing my challenge in the U.S. I plan to make up for my unfinished business in MLB through food.”

“I’m confident, absolutely.”

For an hour, he spoke passionately about his dreams for his second career.