Seiya Suzuki strolled onto the Wrigley Field grass with his Chicago Cubs uniform pants rolled above his thighs, a bold fashion choice that made it appear as if he were wearing 1970s-style basketball shorts.

As the team went through pregame warm-ups before a recent home game, Suzuki played catch while doing an exaggerated pitching windup, like a big kid messing around in the backyard. One player yelled out: “Look at those quads.”

That reaction is apparently what Suzuki wanted. His measurements in this year’s media guide — 5-foot-11, 182 pounds — do not adequately capture the physicality of a Japanese baseball player built in the mold of a Big Ten fullback. And then there is the immeasurable, how he has grown to become very much a part of the clubhouse’s social fabric, the inside jokes and silly celebrations that get amplified when a team is in first place.

“Some people thought I had skinny legs,” Suzuki said through an interpreter. “So I was like, ‘OK, I’m going to show off my legs.’”

Suzuki’s comfort level is obvious as Jed Hoyer’s vision for “The Next Great Cubs Team” comes sharply into focus. This is what club officials envisioned when they signed Suzuki to a five-year, $85 million contract after Major League Baseball’s lockout ended in 2022, hoping he could help reboot a big-market franchise that traded away Anthony Rizzo, Kris Bryant and Javier Báez the previous summer.

Hoyer, the president of baseball operations who recruited Suzuki, sees more decisiveness from a hitter who could sometimes be too passive. Cubs fans catch glimpses on social media with the clips of Suzuki and Pete Crow-Armstrong tapping or bumping each other in the crotch, or Crow-Armstrong pouring water down Suzuki’s jersey to cool him down. Teammates hear it when Suzuki returns to the dugout after hitting a home run and starts screaming.

“It’s his way of communicating with us, not through a translator,” Cubs outfielder Ian Happ said. “It’s Japanese words and maybe a few choice English words.”

“Raw excitement,” Cubs second baseman Nico Hoerner said. “When there is a language gap, you find different ways to express yourself.”

Chicago Cubs designated hitter Seiya Suzuki (27) hits a triple during the fourth inning of a baseball game against the Texas Rangers, Wednesday, April 9, 2025, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley) AP

“I love Seiya,” Crow-Armstrong said. “He has something so light about him when games feel stressful to me. He is just a blast to be around.”

It did not go unnoticed or unappreciated when Suzuki handled the Kyle Tucker situation with aplomb. Suzuki’s clear preference would be playing the outfield regularly. In fact, Suzuki’s Wasserman agent, Joel Wolfe, told a room full of reporters during last year’s Winter Meetings that Suzuki likely would not have signed with a major-league club that projected him as a full-time designated hitter.

Yet Suzuki did not make it a big issue after the Cubs acquired Tucker in a blockbuster trade with the Houston Astros. And when Tucker needed Tuesday off to let his sprained finger heal, Suzuki hit second in the lineup and covered right field during an 8-3 road win over the Washington Nationals. Those transitions can be awkward — see the DH drama between the Boston Red Sox and Rafael Devers — but the Cubs and Suzuki view this as a partnership.

Behind the scenes, Suzuki has not been shy about making suggestions about resources and staffing. And the Cubs have been receptive and proactive in trying to create a welcoming environment for Suzuki, All-Star pitcher Shota Imanaga and their families.

“We try to make every effort possible to make sure our Japanese players are as comfortable as possible,” Hoyer said. “They just have different needs than some other players. It seems right to do whatever we can to make them comfortable. And with that, we get the best performance possible.”

The current numbers — 14 homers, an .879 OPS and 53 RBI in 56 games — are a product of Suzuki’s natural abilities and accumulated experiences as well as this synergy. Suzuki has learned by observing Tucker’s confident approach and benefited from being in a much deeper lineup than the one he first joined in Chicago. Over time, Suzuki followed the club’s instructions to dial back his tireless work in the batting cage and preserve more energy.

“Good game, bad game, whatever in between, he’s just being himself, over and over and over,” Hoerner said. “When he first came over, it was obviously an incredible adjustment period in lifestyle. But also in all these new resources for baseball and figuring out how his routines fit into a very different baseball structure.

“Being goofy, being aggressive on the field, having fun, that’s the version of him we want. It’s not that we have the right way of training, or that Japanese players do, either. Baseball players have had success from so many different places. It’s kind of removing judgment from that and just trusting Seiya as a longtime professional. You’re not getting some young kid from Japan, right? He was an established vet who had so much success.”

When Suzuki initially left Japan for the next challenge, he chose a rebuilding team in the belief he would be afforded more time and space to learn and grow. The expectation was those timelines would eventually merge with the Cubs’ returning to the playoffs and Suzuki’s establishing himself as one of the game’s most dangerous hitters. Now that the Cubs are 16 games above .500, with the entire summer in Wrigleyville ahead, that sense of momentum keeps building.

“We’re having a great time,” Suzuki said. “Everybody can see that.”

Chicago Cubs’ Seiya Suzuki (27) smiles in the dugout after hitting a three-run home run during the second inning inning of a baseball game against the Athletics, Wednesday, April 2, 2025, in West Sacramento, Calif. (AP Photo/Scott Marshall) AP