The French Baseball blog Honus.fr reports that Jamel Boutagra spent ten days in Japan in February, attending training camp of the Hanshin Tigers. It was the third time after 1997 and 1998. The 35-year-old got the invitation from Yoshio Yoshida, who together with Boutagra was at Paris UC in 1989.
Excerpt from an 2009 interview:
I met Mr Yoshida when I was 16 and I played for him with the Paris University Club. I think he saw in me a young talented player with rage to play. After one season I proved him a lot on the field. I had the chance to spend a lot of time with him outside the field. He opened the doors of a different world. He led me in a world where I learnt a lot about me. He has been a spiritual father for me. I don’t think I am the only one to think that way. We are still very sad that he went back to Japan many years ago.
Boutagra participated in two Baseball World Cups with the French National Team in 1994 and 2003 and won the bronze medal during the 1999 European Championships. After trying out in Japan he played independent league baseball in Reno. The past years he played and coached in Toulouse. He signed with Templiers Senart for the upcoming season in the French Elite League.