Jeremy’s Journey | Tokyo Arrival
Jeremy Bleich is a Major League Staff Assistant for the Pirates and works in the clubhouse as a video coach for the Major League pitching staff. The former first-round draft pick (’08, Yankees, 44th pick, out of Stanford University) is a part of Team Israel in the 2021 Olympic Games. Jeremy is a left-handed pitcher from New Orleans, LA, and made his Major League debut in 2018, appearing in two games with the Oakland Athletics. His career included several stops in minor league systems throughout the league, including with Pittsburgh in 2015 as he saw time with Bradenton, Altoona and Indy.
Jeremy was a member of Team Israel in the 2017 WBC, the subject of the documentary Heading Home: The Tale of Team Israel. Jeremy’s grandparents are Holocaust survivors, and he has a deep family connection to his Jewish heritage. Throughout his time in Tokyo, Jeremy will be a special contributor to The Pirates Press in a series we call Jeremy’s Journey.
Part 1:
I sit here in the Olympic Village and about 12 hours ago I walked my first, and probably only, Opening Ceremonies.
It honestly doesn’t even seem real.
But let’s go back to the beginning of my landing in Tokyo, so I can share my thoughts about the first 48 hours of my Olympic experience thus far.
Landing in a foreign country, in the midst of a pandemic, combined with a very detail-oriented culture actually ended up leading to a seamless process. But there are some details that are worth noting- leading up to departure we played a week of games in the eastern United States (exhibition games) and we all left from essentially the same place, but many of us on different flights. Three total Olympic athletes were on my flight from JFK to Narita Airport, and immediately when we landed we had an escort who took us to a quarantine area designed for Olympians where we went through customs, Covid testing, baggage claim, etc. all under their supervision. This was all to make sure there was no crossover with the every day passengers flying that day that could potentially impact our eligibility to participate in terms of getting Covid.
After an hour long bus ride, getting to see the scenic skyline and orderly flow of the city, we checked into the village.
We went through a military type of screening to enter with all of our luggage and then we were taken one by one in an oversized Toyota golf cart with our luggage down a road that bears every single flag of participating countries as athletes from all over the world walked in every which direction in a manner of organized chaos.
We finally arrived at the building of the Israeli delegation, and the security was everything you would expect it would be. We were escorted to our rooms and at that moment I felt somewhat settled and ready to take on this experience.
Guys, the dining area is an absolute machine! There are cuisines from almost every country, two floors of deliciousness, and seating for almost all of the Olympic athletes at once. It really is anything you could ever want all in one area. Each seat is enclosed with plexiglass boards to separate everyone to ensure safety, so technically you are eating alone, but you sit with teammates and talk loudly to overpower the plexiglass.
There is laundry, a barbershop, postal services, a gift shop, dry cleaners and more, all provided and part of the village.
The coolest thing about the entire village is these driverless cars/carts where you get into it, and press your desired location on an iPad and it will take you anywhere in the village. It’s wild.
Ok. That’s enough for now. I’ll check in again soon.
