This really should be a good indicator of exactly how much I enjoy going to games in Japan vs. games in the US, given that I was in Japan until April 12 this year and am back now for a month and a half to catch the end of the year and the university leagues. Will update this as the month progresses.
March 20: Baystars vs. Lions ni-gun, Yokosuka Stadium
March 24: Odate Houmei vs. Tenri, Koshien Stadium, Senbatsu
March 24: Yokohama vs. Hasami, Koshien Stadium, Senbatsu
March 24: Kanazawa vs. Kakogawa Kita, Koshien Stadium, Senbatsu
March 25: Nichidai San vs. Meitoku Gijuku, Koshien Stadium, Senbatsu
March 25: Tigers vs. Buffaloes ni-gun, Naruohama Stadium
March 26: Chiben Wakayama vs. Sado, Koshien Stadium, Senbatsu
March 26: Sogo Gijutsu vs. Riseisha, Koshien Stadium, Senbatsu
March 26: Kokugakuin Kugayama vs. Kyushu Gakuin, Koshien Stadium, Senbatsu
March 29: Fighters vs. Marines ni-gun, Lotte Urawa Stadium
March 30: Hosei vs. Chuo Unversity, Hosei Stadium, university preseason
March 31: Swallows vs. Lions ni-gun, Yakult Toda Stadium
April 1: Meiji vs. Tokai, Shimaoka-Utsumi Ballpark, university preseason
April 2: Swallows vs. Carp, Jingu, charity game
April 3: Swallows vs. Carp, Jingu, charity game
April 5: Chuo vs. Komazawa, Jingu, Tohto University League opener
April 6: Fighters vs. Baystars ni-gun, Kamagaya Stadium
April 7: Hosei vs. Toyo, Hosei Stadium, university preseason
April 10: Keio vs. Rikkio, Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
April 10: Todai vs. Waseda, Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
May 5: Rangers vs. Mariners, Safeco Field
May 7: White Sox vs. Mariners, Safeco Field
May 29: Yankees vs. Mariners, Safeco Field
June 9: Reds vs. Giants, AT&T Park
July 3: Japan College Team vs. USA College Team, Durham Bulls Athletic Park
July 5: Japan College Team vs. USA College Team, National Training Center (Cary, NC)
August 5: Phillies vs. Giants, AT&T Park
August 16: Orioles vs. Athletics, Oakland Coliseum
Sept 15: Marines vs. Fighters, Tokyo Dome
Sept 16: Buffaloes vs. Marines, QVC Marine Field
Sept 17: Rikkio vs. Todai, Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
Sept 17: Hosei vs. Meiji, Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
Sept 18: Meiji vs. Hosei, Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
Sept 18: Baystars vs. Swallows, Jingu
Sept 19: Fighters vs. Lions, Seibu Dome
Sept 19: Baystars vs. Swallows, Jingu
Sept 20: Giants vs. Swallows, Tokyo Dome
Sept 23: Swallows vs. Baystars ni-gun, Yakult Toda Stadium
Sept 24: Hosei vs. Keio, Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
Sept 26: Fighters vs. Giants ni-gun, Kamagaya
Sept 27: Toyo vs. Nihon, Jingu, Tohto University League
Sept 27: Swallows vs. Tigers, Jingu
Sept 28: Lions vs. Fighters ni-gun, Seibu #2 Stadium
Sept 29: Swallows vs. Tigers, Jingu
Sept 30: Marines vs. Fighters, QVC Marine Field
Oct 1: Meiji vs. Keio, Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
Oct 1: Todai vs. Waseda, Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
Oct 2: Waseda vs. Todai, Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
Oct 2: Keio vs. Meiji, Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
Oct 2: Giants vs. Carp, Tokyo Dome
Oct 4: Fighters vs. Eagles, Sapporo Dome
Oct 5: Fighters vs. Eagles, Sapporo Dome
Oct 7: Swallows vs. Carp, Jingu
Oct 9: Todai vs. Hosei, Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
Oct 9: Rikkio vs. Meiji, Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
Oct 9: Swallows vs. Carp, Jingu
Oct 10: Dragons vs. Swallows, Nagoya Dome
Oct 11: Dragons vs. Swallows, Nagoya Dome
Oct 12: Buffaloes vs. Fighters, Osaka Dome
Oct 14: Swallows vs. Tigers, Jingu
Oct 15: Baystars vs. Swallows, Yokohama
Oct 16: Hosei vs. Waseda, Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
Oct 16: Shutoku vs. Sundai, Jingu #2, Tokyo HS Fall Tournament
Oct 16: Keio vs. Rikkio, Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
Oct 17: Hosei vs. Waseda, Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
Oct 17: Keio vs. Rikkio, Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
Oct 18: Lions vs. Fighters, Seibu Dome
Oct 19: Chuo vs. Asia, Jingu, Tohto University League
Oct 23: Todai vs. Meiji, Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
Oct 23: Rikkio vs. Hosei, Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
Oct 24: Meiji vs. Todai, Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
Oct 24: Hosei vs. Rikkio, Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
Oct 25: Toyo vs. Aoyama, Jingu, Tohto University League
Oct 25: Swallows vs. Carp, Jingu
Oct 29: Keio vs. Waseda, Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
Oct 29: Swallows vs. Giants, Jingu, Central League Playoffs
Oct 30: Keio vs. Waseda, Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
Oct 30: Swallows vs. Giants, Jingu, Central League Playoffs
Oct 31: Swallows vs. Giants, Jingu, Central League Playoffs
Nov 2: Hosei vs. Meiji, Jingu, Rookie Tournament Finals
Showing posts with label Frivolous. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Frivolous. Show all posts
Monday, September 19, 2011
Sunday, January 02, 2011
A Picture is Worth 2010 Words
Happy new year, everyone.
Just like 2009 and 2008 and well, every year, I saved every ticket from every game I went to (at least the ones that had tickets).
And well, the final count was 109 games in 2010. I might have been able to shatter my 2009 record of 122 games had I not left Japan for 4 weeks during baseball season. Oh well. I had a pretty good reason to go, and it's the same reason I'll be moving back to the US on January 18th.
I kind of made "resolutions" here last year. Let's see how I did:
1) Go to some Hokushinetsu/BCL games, definitely one in Niigata's new stadium
Done. I saw the Niigata Albirex play three times -- in the new Hard-Off stadium, in Gunma's Isesaki stadium, and in Nagano's Olympic stadium.
2) Go to Okinawa
This did not happen. As a matter of fact, after next week, Okinawa will be the ONLY PREFECTURE IN JAPAN THAT I HAVE NOT VISITED OUT OF ALL 47. I'm going to Kyushu next week to tackle 7 of the remaining 8 prefectures I haven't been to (Shimane, Tottori, Saga, Oita, Miyazaki, Kumamoto, Kagoshima). Technically I've been THROUGH Saga but never left the station so I don't count it.
Maybe I just should decide that Okinawa doesn't count simply because you can't take a train there.
3) Take a train to Hokkaido and see a game in Tohoku inaka somewhere on the way
Yes yes yes! This was one of the most amazing trips I ever took this summer. Unfortunately, due to being on the road for 10 days straight or so, I didn't write it up here. Maybe I'll try to catch up on things like that during the winter.
I basically went to the Fighters game at the Tokyo Dome on August 19, then rode trains all day to get to Sapporo on the 20th (shinkansen to Hachinohe, tokkyu to Hakodate and to Sapporo). Saw games at the Sapporo Dome on the 21st and 22nd, stayed with a friend from Portland who's now in Sapporo with JET, and then rode trains to Akita on the 23rd through Aomori.
Went to Sakata City, Yamagata Prefecture, for an hour on the 24th in the afternoon; took a photo in front of Sakata Minami HS (they were at Koshien a few times recently). Saw the Eagles-Fighters game on the 24th at Akita Komachi Stadium.
Rode the local trains to Morioka and saw the Eagles-Fighters game on the 25th at Morioka Stadium. Came home on the 26th... and saw the entire Rakuten Golden Eagles team in the Morioka shinkansen terminal (was standing behind Yamasaki and Iwakuma in line to get a bento OMG).
4) See a home game for every minor-league team in Japan
Oops on this one. I'm not actually sure I got to any new minor league stadiums at all this year due to time constraints, sadly. I was too busy going to college games and high school games and new other stadiums and prefectures.
5) See the Ibaraki Golden Golds
Oops on this one too. Will have to try for it when I'm visiting in the future.
6) See more industrial league ball than just the Toshitaikou
Yeah, this also turned out to be a big no, though it was actually due to weather; I had plans to go see a regional tourney game once or twice but then decided not to go due to rain or whatever. I'll probably catch some preseason college ball next year against industrial league teams, at least...
And at least I did get to a few games of the Toshitaikou, which is always a lot of fun!
7) See some college ball besides Tohto and Big 6
Hmm. If the Jingu Taikai and the All-Japan College Championship count, I guess I made it. Though I think I was intending more to actually do things like watch some SBBL games and such. Oh well.
I have no goals for 2011 baseball-wise, because I'm really not sure how much I'll be in Japan during the season, sadly. I'll mostly miss the college games, I think; being involved in all of that was really awesome last year. (As noted by the sheer number of little orange and green and white stubs from student ballgames...)
Just like 2009 and 2008 and well, every year, I saved every ticket from every game I went to (at least the ones that had tickets).
And well, the final count was 109 games in 2010. I might have been able to shatter my 2009 record of 122 games had I not left Japan for 4 weeks during baseball season. Oh well. I had a pretty good reason to go, and it's the same reason I'll be moving back to the US on January 18th.
I kind of made "resolutions" here last year. Let's see how I did:
1) Go to some Hokushinetsu/BCL games, definitely one in Niigata's new stadium
Done. I saw the Niigata Albirex play three times -- in the new Hard-Off stadium, in Gunma's Isesaki stadium, and in Nagano's Olympic stadium.
2) Go to Okinawa
This did not happen. As a matter of fact, after next week, Okinawa will be the ONLY PREFECTURE IN JAPAN THAT I HAVE NOT VISITED OUT OF ALL 47. I'm going to Kyushu next week to tackle 7 of the remaining 8 prefectures I haven't been to (Shimane, Tottori, Saga, Oita, Miyazaki, Kumamoto, Kagoshima). Technically I've been THROUGH Saga but never left the station so I don't count it.
Maybe I just should decide that Okinawa doesn't count simply because you can't take a train there.
3) Take a train to Hokkaido and see a game in Tohoku inaka somewhere on the way
Yes yes yes! This was one of the most amazing trips I ever took this summer. Unfortunately, due to being on the road for 10 days straight or so, I didn't write it up here. Maybe I'll try to catch up on things like that during the winter.
I basically went to the Fighters game at the Tokyo Dome on August 19, then rode trains all day to get to Sapporo on the 20th (shinkansen to Hachinohe, tokkyu to Hakodate and to Sapporo). Saw games at the Sapporo Dome on the 21st and 22nd, stayed with a friend from Portland who's now in Sapporo with JET, and then rode trains to Akita on the 23rd through Aomori.
Went to Sakata City, Yamagata Prefecture, for an hour on the 24th in the afternoon; took a photo in front of Sakata Minami HS (they were at Koshien a few times recently). Saw the Eagles-Fighters game on the 24th at Akita Komachi Stadium.
Rode the local trains to Morioka and saw the Eagles-Fighters game on the 25th at Morioka Stadium. Came home on the 26th... and saw the entire Rakuten Golden Eagles team in the Morioka shinkansen terminal (was standing behind Yamasaki and Iwakuma in line to get a bento OMG).
4) See a home game for every minor-league team in Japan
Oops on this one. I'm not actually sure I got to any new minor league stadiums at all this year due to time constraints, sadly. I was too busy going to college games and high school games and new other stadiums and prefectures.
5) See the Ibaraki Golden Golds
Oops on this one too. Will have to try for it when I'm visiting in the future.
6) See more industrial league ball than just the Toshitaikou
Yeah, this also turned out to be a big no, though it was actually due to weather; I had plans to go see a regional tourney game once or twice but then decided not to go due to rain or whatever. I'll probably catch some preseason college ball next year against industrial league teams, at least...
And at least I did get to a few games of the Toshitaikou, which is always a lot of fun!
7) See some college ball besides Tohto and Big 6
Hmm. If the Jingu Taikai and the All-Japan College Championship count, I guess I made it. Though I think I was intending more to actually do things like watch some SBBL games and such. Oh well.
I have no goals for 2011 baseball-wise, because I'm really not sure how much I'll be in Japan during the season, sadly. I'll mostly miss the college games, I think; being involved in all of that was really awesome last year. (As noted by the sheer number of little orange and green and white stubs from student ballgames...)
Monday, November 08, 2010
Recipe For A Lotte Japan Series Championship
I was just thinking about the 2005 Japan Series again, since that was the first one I really followed every game for. As such, I have come to the conclusion that the following things are required for Lotte to win the Japan Series:
- a difficult weather phenomenon during Game 1 (2005: ridiculous fog that eventually stopped the game in Chiba. 2010: a typhoon hitting the eastern seaboard of Japan during Game 1, but it was in a dome)
- a Korean 1B/DH who first earns the ire of the Lotte fans but comes through in the postseason and gets back into everyone's good graces (2005: Seung-Yeop Lee, 2010: Tae-kyun Kim.)
- Shunsuke Watanabe throwing at least one complete-game win (2005: Game 2, 2010: Game 3)
- a closer named Kobayashi who blows at least one save in the postseason (2005: Masahide, 2010: Hiroyuki)
- a foreign pitcher to surprise everyone with a start (and win!) in Chiba (2005: Dan Serafini, 2010: Hayden Penn)
- Toshiaki Imae coming through in clutch situations and winning an MVP
- The opposition putting up an ancient lefty pitcher as a starter (2005: Tsuyoshi Shimoyanagi, 2010: Masahiro Yamamoto)
I'll add to this as I think of more -- or feel free to chime in yourself!
Oh, for the record, I bought a ticket today for the SK Wyverns vs. Chiba Lotte Marines game this coming Saturday. If you're thinking of going, I suggest jumping on tickets soon -- the Lotte fans are going to fill the Tokyo Dome, I think. (I'm expecting they'll have to sell a lot of IF unreserved tickets and open up the 2nd floor, honestly.)
- a difficult weather phenomenon during Game 1 (2005: ridiculous fog that eventually stopped the game in Chiba. 2010: a typhoon hitting the eastern seaboard of Japan during Game 1, but it was in a dome)
- a Korean 1B/DH who first earns the ire of the Lotte fans but comes through in the postseason and gets back into everyone's good graces (2005: Seung-Yeop Lee, 2010: Tae-kyun Kim.)
- Shunsuke Watanabe throwing at least one complete-game win (2005: Game 2, 2010: Game 3)
- a closer named Kobayashi who blows at least one save in the postseason (2005: Masahide, 2010: Hiroyuki)
- a foreign pitcher to surprise everyone with a start (and win!) in Chiba (2005: Dan Serafini, 2010: Hayden Penn)
- Toshiaki Imae coming through in clutch situations and winning an MVP
- The opposition putting up an ancient lefty pitcher as a starter (2005: Tsuyoshi Shimoyanagi, 2010: Masahiro Yamamoto)
I'll add to this as I think of more -- or feel free to chime in yourself!
Oh, for the record, I bought a ticket today for the SK Wyverns vs. Chiba Lotte Marines game this coming Saturday. If you're thinking of going, I suggest jumping on tickets soon -- the Lotte fans are going to fill the Tokyo Dome, I think. (I'm expecting they'll have to sell a lot of IF unreserved tickets and open up the 2nd floor, honestly.)
Saturday, September 18, 2010
Land of the Rising Fastball
Two summers ago, I was interviewed for a documentary about Japanese baseball called Land of the Rising Fastball, directed by Lance Miccio. It took them a while to actually finish the movie, and worse, while they were finishing up production, the editor, Andrew Koenig (probably best known as "Boner" on Growing Pains), committed suicide.
But, Lance did send me a DVD of it a few months ago and I watched it. I was embarrassed to note a few mistakes, and one of them was my own (I said Soukeisen went back to 1905, when it was infact 1903. But that's probably not as bad as them labelling Shigeo Nagashima as a Waseda star; you better hope that nobody from Rikkio ever watches this movie).
Overall, I'd say that the movie is an interesting watch if you're an English-speaking fan of Japanese baseball; there are some great segments of interviews with guys like Sachio Kinugasa and Masanori Murakami, done in Japanese and subtitled in English, and even some amusing stories from guys like Doug DeCinces and Gabe Kapler. And of course, you can see people like me and Michael Westbay babbling as well (and, embarassingly, you can hear me sing Hichori's ouenka. I think that was my biggest "OMG MUST TURN OFF THE DVD NOW" moment when watching it).
I will also say that there are definitely times when it drags; notably when Lance is trying to make a point about how World War 2 was Very Very Bad and there's like 5 minutes of various footage that doesn't really add to the movie as a whole.
Anyway, the actual reason I'm writing this post right now is that if you happen to be in the Bay Area, the movie is going to be screened at the Other Cinema in the Mission district of San Francisco, and you can meet Lance and ask him questions about the movie and all. It'll be shown on September 25th at 8:30pm, I believe.
Also, it's really embarrassing, but I did actually write a post about the filming and just never took it out of the draft pile on here because I was busy and absentminded, so here's my post about the movie filming if it didn't already show up backdated on your RSS readers.
But, Lance did send me a DVD of it a few months ago and I watched it. I was embarrassed to note a few mistakes, and one of them was my own (I said Soukeisen went back to 1905, when it was infact 1903. But that's probably not as bad as them labelling Shigeo Nagashima as a Waseda star; you better hope that nobody from Rikkio ever watches this movie).
Overall, I'd say that the movie is an interesting watch if you're an English-speaking fan of Japanese baseball; there are some great segments of interviews with guys like Sachio Kinugasa and Masanori Murakami, done in Japanese and subtitled in English, and even some amusing stories from guys like Doug DeCinces and Gabe Kapler. And of course, you can see people like me and Michael Westbay babbling as well (and, embarassingly, you can hear me sing Hichori's ouenka. I think that was my biggest "OMG MUST TURN OFF THE DVD NOW" moment when watching it).
I will also say that there are definitely times when it drags; notably when Lance is trying to make a point about how World War 2 was Very Very Bad and there's like 5 minutes of various footage that doesn't really add to the movie as a whole.
Anyway, the actual reason I'm writing this post right now is that if you happen to be in the Bay Area, the movie is going to be screened at the Other Cinema in the Mission district of San Francisco, and you can meet Lance and ask him questions about the movie and all. It'll be shown on September 25th at 8:30pm, I believe.
Also, it's really embarrassing, but I did actually write a post about the filming and just never took it out of the draft pile on here because I was busy and absentminded, so here's my post about the movie filming if it didn't already show up backdated on your RSS readers.
Thursday, April 29, 2010
Deanna's 2010 Gamelog
You know, it was really useful last year to have a post listing all the games I went to, so before this year gets too far out of control, I think I want to do that again.
109. November 14, Waseda vs. Aichi Gakuin @ Jingu, Jingu Taikai
108. November 14, Nichidai Sanko vs. Hokkai @ Jingu, Jingu Taikai
107. November 13, Marines vs. SK Wyverns @ Tokyo Dome, Japan-Korea Challenge Game
106. November 3, Keio vs. Waseda @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
105. November 2, Marines vs. Dragons @ Chiba Marine (Japan Series!)
104. October 31, Keio vs. Waseda @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
103. October 24, Rikkio vs. Meiji @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
102. October 24, Tokyo vs. Hosei @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
101. October 23, Hosei vs. Tokyo @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
100. October 23, Meiji vs. Rikkio @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
99. October 20, Toyo vs. Asia @ Jingu, Tohto University League
98. October 16, Keio vs. Meiji @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
97. October 16, Waseda vs. Rikkio @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
96. October 11, Todai vs. Rikkio @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
95. October 11, Hosei vs. Meiji @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
94. October 10, Swallows vs. Carp @ Jingu
93. October 8, Giants vs. Swallows @ Tokyo Dome
92. October 7, Giants vs. Carp @ Tokyo Dome
91. October 5, Swallows vs. Tigers @ Jingu
90. October 2, Dragons vs. Swallows @ Nagoya Dome
89. September 26, Swallows vs. Dragons @ Jingu
88. September 25, Swallows vs. Giants @ Jingu
87. September 25, Waseda vs. Meiji @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
86. September 20, Fighters vs. Swallows @ Kamagaya, minor league
85. September 19, Shinano Grandserows vs. Niigata Albirex @ Olympic Stadium Nagano, BCL
84. September 18, Hosei vs. Rikkio @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
83. September 16, Swallows vs. Giants @ Jingu
82. September 14, Swallows vs. Giants @ Jingu
81. September 12, Todai vs. Keio @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
80. September 12, Hosei vs. Waseda @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
79. September 11, Waseda vs. Hosei @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
78. September 11, Keio vs. Todai @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
77. September 9, Seibu Lions vs. Fighters @ Seibu Dome
76. September 8, Seibu Lions vs. Fighters @ Seibu Dome
75. September 7, Seibu Lions vs. Fighters @ Seibu Dome
74. September 5, Marines vs. Fighters @ Chiba Marine
73. September 4, Chuo vs. Aoyama Gakuin @ Jingu, Tohto University League
72. September 3, Marines vs. Fighters @ Chiba Marine
71. September 2, Toshiba vs. JR East @ Tokyo Dome, Intercity Baseball Tournament (industrial league)
70. August 31, Toshiba vs. Tokai Rika @ Tokyo Dome, Intercity Baseball Tournament (industrial league)
69. August 28, Botchan (Hosei-Rikkio-Keio) vs. Madonna (Waseda-Tokyo-Meiji) @ Botchan Stadium, Tokyo Big 6 University All-Star Game
68. August 27, Carp vs. Giants @ Mazda Zoom-Zoom Stadium Hiroshima
67. August 25, Eagles vs. Fighters @ Morioka
66. August 24, Eagles vs. Fighters @ Akita Komachi
65. August 22, Fighters vs. Lions @ Sapporo Dome
64. August 21, Fighters vs. Lions @ Sapporo Dome
63. August 19, Fighters vs. Marines @ Tokyo Dome
62. August 14, Portland Beavers vs. Albuquerque Isotopes @ PGE Park, AAA
61. August 4, Mariners vs. Rangers @ Safeco Field
60. July 25, Seiritsu vs. Kanto Daiichi @ Jingu, East Tokyo Koshien Qualifiers
59. July 25, Shutoku vs. Kokushikan @ Jingu, East Tokyo Koshien Qualifiers
58. July 24, Yokohama vs. Yokohama Shodai @ Yokohama Stadium, Kanagawa Koshien Qualifiers
57. July 23, Urawa Gakuin vs. Washinomiya @ Omiya, Saitama Koshien Qualifiers
56. July 22, Waseda Jitsugyo vs. Soka @ Jingu, West Tokyo Koshien Qualifiers
55. July 20, Giants vs. Swallows @ Tokyo Dome
54. July 18, Teikyo vs. Nichidai Sakuragaoka @ Edogawa, East Tokyo Koshien Qualifiers
53. July 17, Swallows vs. Tigers @ Jingu
52. July 15, Seibu Lions vs. Fighters @ Seibu Dome
51. July 14, Seibu Lions vs. Fighters @ Seibu Dome
50. July 13, Seibu Lions vs. Fighters @ Seibu Dome
49. July 11, Rikkio Ikebukuro vs. Toritsu Edogawa @ Meiji University Stadium, East Tokyo Koshien Qualifiers
48. July 8, Fighters vs. Hawks @ Tokyo Dome
47. July 7, Fighters vs. Hawks @ Tokyo Dome
46. July 6, Fighters vs. Hawks @ Tokyo Dome
45. June 30, Seibu Lions vs. Fighters @ Omiya
44. June 27, Gunma Diamond Pegasus vs. Niigata Albirex @ Isesaki Stadium, BCL
43. June 26, Niigata Albirex vs. Gunma Diamond Pegasus @ Hard-Off Eco Stadium Niigata, BCL
42. June 23, Swallows vs. Giants @ Jingu
41. June 22, Swallows vs. Giants @ Jingu
40. June 15, Swallows vs. Fighters @ Jingu
39. June 14, Swallows vs. Fighters @ Jingu
38. June 12, Toyo vs. Hachinohe @ Jingu, All-Japan College Tournament
37. June 12, Keio vs. Tokai @ Jingu, All-Japan College Tournament
36. June 9, Keio vs. Toin Yokohama @ Jingu, All-Japan College Tournament
35. June 7, Baystars vs. Fighters @ Sagamihara
34. June 5, Fighters vs. Buffaloes @ Tokyo Dome
33. June 4, Fighters vs. Buffaloes @ Tokyo Dome
32. May 31, Fighters vs. Eagles @ Kamagaya, minor league
31. May 29, Waseda vs. Keio @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
30. May 23, Giants vs. Buffaloes @ Tokyo Dome
29. May 15, Meiji vs. Hosei @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
28. May 15, Meiji vs. Keio @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
27. May 15, Waseda vs. Hosei @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
26. May 8, Rikkio vs. Keio @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
25. May 8, Tokyo vs. Hosei @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
24. May 1, Mariners vs. Rangers @ Safeco Field
23. April 25, Rakuten vs. Fighters @ Kleenex Stadium Miyagi
22. April 24, Rakuten vs. Fighters @ Kleenex Stadium Miyagi
21. April 20, Rakuten vs. Marines @ Tokyo Dome
20. April 18, Seibu Lions vs. Fighters @ Seibu Dome
19. April 17, Rikkio vs. Hosei @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
18. April 11, Fighters vs. Marines @ Kamagaya, minor league
17. April 10, Waseda vs. Rikkio @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
16. April 10, Meiji vs. Todai @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
15. April 9, Giants vs. Dragons @ Tokyo Dome
14. April 6, Baystars vs. Dragons @ Yokohama
13. March 31, Fighters vs. Buffaloes @ Tokyo Dome
12. March 30, Fighters vs. Buffaloes @ Tokyo Dome
11. March 27, Marines vs. Fighters @ Chiba Marine
10. March 26, Marines vs. Fighters @ Chiba Marine
9. March 23, Takaoka Shogyo vs. Chiben Wakayama @ Koshien, Senbatsu HS Tournament
8. March 23, Morioka Daifu vs. Chukyodai Chukyo @ Koshien, Senbatsu HS Tournament
7. March 23, Kochi vs. Shinko Gakuen @ Koshien, Senbatsu HS Tournament
6. March 18, Baystars vs. Dragons @ Yokohama, preseason game
5. March 16, Fighters vs. Dragons @ Kamagaya, preseason game
4. March 14, Swallows vs. Fighters @ Jingu Stadium, preseason game
3. March 13, Fighters vs. Marines @ Tokyo Dome, preseason game
2. March 11, Baystars vs. Fighters @ Yokohama Stadium, preseason game
1. March 10, Swallows vs. Marines @ Jingu Stadium, preseason game
109. November 14, Waseda vs. Aichi Gakuin @ Jingu, Jingu Taikai
108. November 14, Nichidai Sanko vs. Hokkai @ Jingu, Jingu Taikai
107. November 13, Marines vs. SK Wyverns @ Tokyo Dome, Japan-Korea Challenge Game
106. November 3, Keio vs. Waseda @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
105. November 2, Marines vs. Dragons @ Chiba Marine (Japan Series!)
104. October 31, Keio vs. Waseda @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
103. October 24, Rikkio vs. Meiji @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
102. October 24, Tokyo vs. Hosei @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
101. October 23, Hosei vs. Tokyo @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
100. October 23, Meiji vs. Rikkio @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
99. October 20, Toyo vs. Asia @ Jingu, Tohto University League
98. October 16, Keio vs. Meiji @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
97. October 16, Waseda vs. Rikkio @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
96. October 11, Todai vs. Rikkio @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
95. October 11, Hosei vs. Meiji @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
94. October 10, Swallows vs. Carp @ Jingu
93. October 8, Giants vs. Swallows @ Tokyo Dome
92. October 7, Giants vs. Carp @ Tokyo Dome
91. October 5, Swallows vs. Tigers @ Jingu
90. October 2, Dragons vs. Swallows @ Nagoya Dome
89. September 26, Swallows vs. Dragons @ Jingu
88. September 25, Swallows vs. Giants @ Jingu
87. September 25, Waseda vs. Meiji @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
86. September 20, Fighters vs. Swallows @ Kamagaya, minor league
85. September 19, Shinano Grandserows vs. Niigata Albirex @ Olympic Stadium Nagano, BCL
84. September 18, Hosei vs. Rikkio @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
83. September 16, Swallows vs. Giants @ Jingu
82. September 14, Swallows vs. Giants @ Jingu
81. September 12, Todai vs. Keio @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
80. September 12, Hosei vs. Waseda @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
79. September 11, Waseda vs. Hosei @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
78. September 11, Keio vs. Todai @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
77. September 9, Seibu Lions vs. Fighters @ Seibu Dome
76. September 8, Seibu Lions vs. Fighters @ Seibu Dome
75. September 7, Seibu Lions vs. Fighters @ Seibu Dome
74. September 5, Marines vs. Fighters @ Chiba Marine
73. September 4, Chuo vs. Aoyama Gakuin @ Jingu, Tohto University League
72. September 3, Marines vs. Fighters @ Chiba Marine
71. September 2, Toshiba vs. JR East @ Tokyo Dome, Intercity Baseball Tournament (industrial league)
70. August 31, Toshiba vs. Tokai Rika @ Tokyo Dome, Intercity Baseball Tournament (industrial league)
69. August 28, Botchan (Hosei-Rikkio-Keio) vs. Madonna (Waseda-Tokyo-Meiji) @ Botchan Stadium, Tokyo Big 6 University All-Star Game
68. August 27, Carp vs. Giants @ Mazda Zoom-Zoom Stadium Hiroshima
67. August 25, Eagles vs. Fighters @ Morioka
66. August 24, Eagles vs. Fighters @ Akita Komachi
65. August 22, Fighters vs. Lions @ Sapporo Dome
64. August 21, Fighters vs. Lions @ Sapporo Dome
63. August 19, Fighters vs. Marines @ Tokyo Dome
62. August 14, Portland Beavers vs. Albuquerque Isotopes @ PGE Park, AAA
61. August 4, Mariners vs. Rangers @ Safeco Field
60. July 25, Seiritsu vs. Kanto Daiichi @ Jingu, East Tokyo Koshien Qualifiers
59. July 25, Shutoku vs. Kokushikan @ Jingu, East Tokyo Koshien Qualifiers
58. July 24, Yokohama vs. Yokohama Shodai @ Yokohama Stadium, Kanagawa Koshien Qualifiers
57. July 23, Urawa Gakuin vs. Washinomiya @ Omiya, Saitama Koshien Qualifiers
56. July 22, Waseda Jitsugyo vs. Soka @ Jingu, West Tokyo Koshien Qualifiers
55. July 20, Giants vs. Swallows @ Tokyo Dome
54. July 18, Teikyo vs. Nichidai Sakuragaoka @ Edogawa, East Tokyo Koshien Qualifiers
53. July 17, Swallows vs. Tigers @ Jingu
52. July 15, Seibu Lions vs. Fighters @ Seibu Dome
51. July 14, Seibu Lions vs. Fighters @ Seibu Dome
50. July 13, Seibu Lions vs. Fighters @ Seibu Dome
49. July 11, Rikkio Ikebukuro vs. Toritsu Edogawa @ Meiji University Stadium, East Tokyo Koshien Qualifiers
48. July 8, Fighters vs. Hawks @ Tokyo Dome
47. July 7, Fighters vs. Hawks @ Tokyo Dome
46. July 6, Fighters vs. Hawks @ Tokyo Dome
45. June 30, Seibu Lions vs. Fighters @ Omiya
44. June 27, Gunma Diamond Pegasus vs. Niigata Albirex @ Isesaki Stadium, BCL
43. June 26, Niigata Albirex vs. Gunma Diamond Pegasus @ Hard-Off Eco Stadium Niigata, BCL
42. June 23, Swallows vs. Giants @ Jingu
41. June 22, Swallows vs. Giants @ Jingu
40. June 15, Swallows vs. Fighters @ Jingu
39. June 14, Swallows vs. Fighters @ Jingu
38. June 12, Toyo vs. Hachinohe @ Jingu, All-Japan College Tournament
37. June 12, Keio vs. Tokai @ Jingu, All-Japan College Tournament
36. June 9, Keio vs. Toin Yokohama @ Jingu, All-Japan College Tournament
35. June 7, Baystars vs. Fighters @ Sagamihara
34. June 5, Fighters vs. Buffaloes @ Tokyo Dome
33. June 4, Fighters vs. Buffaloes @ Tokyo Dome
32. May 31, Fighters vs. Eagles @ Kamagaya, minor league
31. May 29, Waseda vs. Keio @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
30. May 23, Giants vs. Buffaloes @ Tokyo Dome
29. May 15, Meiji vs. Hosei @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
28. May 15, Meiji vs. Keio @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
27. May 15, Waseda vs. Hosei @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
26. May 8, Rikkio vs. Keio @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
25. May 8, Tokyo vs. Hosei @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
24. May 1, Mariners vs. Rangers @ Safeco Field
23. April 25, Rakuten vs. Fighters @ Kleenex Stadium Miyagi
22. April 24, Rakuten vs. Fighters @ Kleenex Stadium Miyagi
21. April 20, Rakuten vs. Marines @ Tokyo Dome
20. April 18, Seibu Lions vs. Fighters @ Seibu Dome
19. April 17, Rikkio vs. Hosei @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
18. April 11, Fighters vs. Marines @ Kamagaya, minor league
17. April 10, Waseda vs. Rikkio @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
16. April 10, Meiji vs. Todai @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
15. April 9, Giants vs. Dragons @ Tokyo Dome
14. April 6, Baystars vs. Dragons @ Yokohama
13. March 31, Fighters vs. Buffaloes @ Tokyo Dome
12. March 30, Fighters vs. Buffaloes @ Tokyo Dome
11. March 27, Marines vs. Fighters @ Chiba Marine
10. March 26, Marines vs. Fighters @ Chiba Marine
9. March 23, Takaoka Shogyo vs. Chiben Wakayama @ Koshien, Senbatsu HS Tournament
8. March 23, Morioka Daifu vs. Chukyodai Chukyo @ Koshien, Senbatsu HS Tournament
7. March 23, Kochi vs. Shinko Gakuen @ Koshien, Senbatsu HS Tournament
6. March 18, Baystars vs. Dragons @ Yokohama, preseason game
5. March 16, Fighters vs. Dragons @ Kamagaya, preseason game
4. March 14, Swallows vs. Fighters @ Jingu Stadium, preseason game
3. March 13, Fighters vs. Marines @ Tokyo Dome, preseason game
2. March 11, Baystars vs. Fighters @ Yokohama Stadium, preseason game
1. March 10, Swallows vs. Marines @ Jingu Stadium, preseason game
Friday, January 08, 2010
Friday Foto: A Trip To Obama
This is only partially baseball-relevant, but me and the Fighters mascot B*B went up to Fukui prefecture this week to see Obama City!
We used a Seishun 18 ticket, which lets you ride unlimited trains anywhere in the country for 2300 yen per day... unlimited local trains, that is. You can't take any limited express trains, or the shinkansen or anything like that. It's a fantastic way to see the countryside, but not really a particularly efficient way to travel. (I went to Koshien using it this summer, but it took me 10 hours to get to Osaka, and another 12 from there to Fukuoka. You can get to Fukuoka in 5 hours from Tokyo via shinkansen.)
The first day, we went to Tsuruga (Fukui Prefecture), with a stop in Kofu (Yamanashi Prefecture) for lunch, and also took 2 hours to visit Matsumoto Castle in Nagano Prefecture.
B*B really liked Matsumoto Castle, though he was a little surprised by how much it focused on their guns and artillery of the period.
I debated trying to find Tsuruga Kehi High School while I was staying in Tsuruga, but it was pretty far out of the main part of town, and it was freezing cold out, so I wasn't going to walk a mile or two out there. I saw them play at Koshien and despite them getting steamrollered by my hometown Teikyo team, I really liked their lefty pitcher Nobuyoshi Yamada... who later was drafted by Orix.
For the record, there is very little in Tsuruga, as far as I could tell -- if you are heading to Obama City you'll probably end up going through there as it's a terminus for the Obama Line, but like many other "countryside" cities, there isn't very much to do there, nor anything much open at either 10am or 10pm.
The next day, we woke up and went to Obama City, which is about an hour from Tsuruga, on the northern coast of Japan.
However, the day I was there, it was raining and snowing and windy and cold and wet and generally horrible. So all I saw was the ruins of the former Obama Castle, where there is now the Obama Shrine, and I walked along the waterfront a bit. What I was told is that there are a lot of temples in the area, and nice seafood restaurants, and a good beach, and local craft stores, but what you should really do is apparently go there in the summer and rent a bicycle and ride around, rather than coming there in the winter and staggering through sleetstorms. Also, a lot of things were closed still for New Year's, including many stores, restaurants, and the Chopsticks museum.
I did find one great souvenir store that was open:
This is Wakasaya, where you can get a ridiculous amount of "I ♥ Obama" stuff from the "Obama City Supporting President Obama" group. They have Obama banners up all over town, too, which is a little surreal. You can buy Obama chopsticks, or cookies, or t-shirts, all kinds of stuff.
And then I wandered around town taking photos of any sign with "Obama" on it, no matter how irrelevant:
I actually had lunch at the fisherman's wharf, but instead of seafood, I had sauce-katsudon, which is also a specialty of Fukui prefecture, it seems.
This is Obama Shrine. It stands on the ground where Obama Castle used to be until it burned down in 1871. The shrine was also closed, so I couldn't get an Obama protective charm, but I did climb to the top of the highest part of the old castle's wall, and even though it was rainy and cloudy, I could tell it had a great view of the area and the mountains and the sea and all.
We gave up on Obama City a bit after that and took the train to Hikone.
The next day we went to see Hikone Castle in the morning...
It was snowing that day too. On the way to the castle, we passed by two boys carrying Ohmi HS sports bags and wearing baseball pants -- and I realized the school must be pretty close to there!
Sure enough, once we climbed to the top of the castle, and looked out over the city, one of the landmarks they pointed out was, infact, Ohmi HS and Shiga Prefectural Stadium (which the Ohmi team uses, apparently):
Ohmi has represented Shiga Prefecture in 5 out of the last 10 summer Koshien tournaments -- they've never won the entire thing, although in 2001 they lost the finals to Nichidai Sanko.
I sadly didn't really have any time to walk over to the school to take a look, because I had to be in Nagoya by noon to meet up with a friend for lunch.
After lunch I wandered over to the Nagoya Dome on a whim to see if I could get a set of Tatsunami retirement cheersticks (the only chance I had at Tatsunami retirement goods was the final Dragons game at Jingu on October 12, and it all sold out about an hour before the game started). They did, infact, have plenty of Tatsunami stuff at the store, but even weirder, there was a line of people outside the dome, at 2:30pm...
It turns out that there was a Tatsunami Thanks Party of sorts (立浪選手に感謝する会) going on at the Dome at 6:30pm. What timing! I briefly thought about whether it'd be possible for me to stay in Nagoya long enough for it, but decided I really didn't feel like taking a night train back to Tokyo again, and so I sighed and was on my way.
Stopped off in Shizuoka for dinner -- which is a soccer town, not a baseball town -- and got back home around 11pm.
We used a Seishun 18 ticket, which lets you ride unlimited trains anywhere in the country for 2300 yen per day... unlimited local trains, that is. You can't take any limited express trains, or the shinkansen or anything like that. It's a fantastic way to see the countryside, but not really a particularly efficient way to travel. (I went to Koshien using it this summer, but it took me 10 hours to get to Osaka, and another 12 from there to Fukuoka. You can get to Fukuoka in 5 hours from Tokyo via shinkansen.)
The first day, we went to Tsuruga (Fukui Prefecture), with a stop in Kofu (Yamanashi Prefecture) for lunch, and also took 2 hours to visit Matsumoto Castle in Nagano Prefecture.
B*B really liked Matsumoto Castle, though he was a little surprised by how much it focused on their guns and artillery of the period.
I debated trying to find Tsuruga Kehi High School while I was staying in Tsuruga, but it was pretty far out of the main part of town, and it was freezing cold out, so I wasn't going to walk a mile or two out there. I saw them play at Koshien and despite them getting steamrollered by my hometown Teikyo team, I really liked their lefty pitcher Nobuyoshi Yamada... who later was drafted by Orix.
For the record, there is very little in Tsuruga, as far as I could tell -- if you are heading to Obama City you'll probably end up going through there as it's a terminus for the Obama Line, but like many other "countryside" cities, there isn't very much to do there, nor anything much open at either 10am or 10pm.
The next day, we woke up and went to Obama City, which is about an hour from Tsuruga, on the northern coast of Japan.
However, the day I was there, it was raining and snowing and windy and cold and wet and generally horrible. So all I saw was the ruins of the former Obama Castle, where there is now the Obama Shrine, and I walked along the waterfront a bit. What I was told is that there are a lot of temples in the area, and nice seafood restaurants, and a good beach, and local craft stores, but what you should really do is apparently go there in the summer and rent a bicycle and ride around, rather than coming there in the winter and staggering through sleetstorms. Also, a lot of things were closed still for New Year's, including many stores, restaurants, and the Chopsticks museum.
I did find one great souvenir store that was open:
This is Wakasaya, where you can get a ridiculous amount of "I ♥ Obama" stuff from the "Obama City Supporting President Obama" group. They have Obama banners up all over town, too, which is a little surreal. You can buy Obama chopsticks, or cookies, or t-shirts, all kinds of stuff.
And then I wandered around town taking photos of any sign with "Obama" on it, no matter how irrelevant:
I actually had lunch at the fisherman's wharf, but instead of seafood, I had sauce-katsudon, which is also a specialty of Fukui prefecture, it seems.
This is Obama Shrine. It stands on the ground where Obama Castle used to be until it burned down in 1871. The shrine was also closed, so I couldn't get an Obama protective charm, but I did climb to the top of the highest part of the old castle's wall, and even though it was rainy and cloudy, I could tell it had a great view of the area and the mountains and the sea and all.
We gave up on Obama City a bit after that and took the train to Hikone.
The next day we went to see Hikone Castle in the morning...
It was snowing that day too. On the way to the castle, we passed by two boys carrying Ohmi HS sports bags and wearing baseball pants -- and I realized the school must be pretty close to there!
Sure enough, once we climbed to the top of the castle, and looked out over the city, one of the landmarks they pointed out was, infact, Ohmi HS and Shiga Prefectural Stadium (which the Ohmi team uses, apparently):
Ohmi has represented Shiga Prefecture in 5 out of the last 10 summer Koshien tournaments -- they've never won the entire thing, although in 2001 they lost the finals to Nichidai Sanko.
I sadly didn't really have any time to walk over to the school to take a look, because I had to be in Nagoya by noon to meet up with a friend for lunch.
After lunch I wandered over to the Nagoya Dome on a whim to see if I could get a set of Tatsunami retirement cheersticks (the only chance I had at Tatsunami retirement goods was the final Dragons game at Jingu on October 12, and it all sold out about an hour before the game started). They did, infact, have plenty of Tatsunami stuff at the store, but even weirder, there was a line of people outside the dome, at 2:30pm...
It turns out that there was a Tatsunami Thanks Party of sorts (立浪選手に感謝する会) going on at the Dome at 6:30pm. What timing! I briefly thought about whether it'd be possible for me to stay in Nagoya long enough for it, but decided I really didn't feel like taking a night train back to Tokyo again, and so I sighed and was on my way.
Stopped off in Shizuoka for dinner -- which is a soccer town, not a baseball town -- and got back home around 11pm.
Thursday, December 31, 2009
A Picture is Worth 2009 Words
Happy new year, everyone.
Just like last year and every year, I saved every ticket from every game I went to.
And well, the final count was 122 games attended in 2009.
Teams I saw the most games:
1. Nippon Ham Fighters, 58 games
2. Chiba Lotte Marines, 32 games
3. Yomiuri Giants, 15 games
4. Yakult Swallows, 11 games
5. Meiji University, 10 games
5. Seibu Lions, 10 games
7. Orix Buffaloes, 9 games
8. Hosei University, 8 games
8. Chunichi Dragons, 8 games
(the next one is 7 games, a tie for Softbank Hawks, and for Waseda and Keio university)
I think this is fairly representative of my year -- I saw a lot of Fighters games and a lot of Marines games, a lot of Pacific League ball in general, and a lot of college baseball. The Giants games were all pretty much cheering against them -- the Fighters interleague and Japan Series, plus going to Jingu with the Tsubamegun guys to cheer against the Giants, plus going to Dragons games to do the special Yomiuri Taose cheers at the Tokyo Dome, and this also counted a few preseason games when I got free tickets to see the Marines-Giants and such.
I'm a little surprised to realize I didn't see the Rakuten Eagles more often (only 4 times). I think what happened is that I saw them on TV a lot, and this year I didn't see their minor-league team nearly as much as I did last year, basically.
Stadiums I saw the most games:
1. Meiji Jingu Stadium, 34 games
2. Tokyo Dome, 29 games
3. Chiba Marine Stadium, 17 games
4. Fighters Kamagaya Stadium, 7 games
4. Seibu Dome, 7 games
5. Koshien, 5 games
6. Sapporo Dome, 4 games
Jingu is being a little bit inflated by the fact that I often sit through two college baseball games in one day there.
I went to 18 different stadiums in 12 different prefectures on all 4 major islands of Japan, so that was pretty good.
My goals for 2010 in terms of watching games are:
1) Go to some Hokushinetsu/BCL games, definitely one in Niigata's new stadium
2) Go to Okinawa (this may not happen because of timing with a trip I'm taking back to the US, though, I won't get back until Feb 23)
3) Take a train to Hokkaido and see a game in Tohoku inaka somewhere on the way
4) See a home game for every minor-league team in Japan
5) See the Ibaraki Golden Golds
6) See more industrial league ball than just the Toshitaikou
7) See some college ball besides Tohto and Big 6
I *think* that's it. I should in theory add trying to see the Girls Pro League and trying to catch Eri Yoshida somewhere, but I'm not sure how serious I am about that. I think I want to go back to Koshien again next year now that I understand how it works, too, but we'll see.
And for the record, the hiatus in December mostly happened because I was having a very stressful time finishing up my job at the junior high school I was at, along with writing a lot elsewhere and not really having a lot to say here -- there doesn't seem to be a point in me translating articles anymore now that someone else is doing it, although I guess I could add some commentary on things. I still read baseball magazines and keep up with stuff, but December is a pretty dead month for actually doing things per se. However, I'm hoping to do a few things with the blog in the next month or two. We'll see. The offseason SUCKS.
Just like last year and every year, I saved every ticket from every game I went to.
And well, the final count was 122 games attended in 2009.
Teams I saw the most games:
1. Nippon Ham Fighters, 58 games
2. Chiba Lotte Marines, 32 games
3. Yomiuri Giants, 15 games
4. Yakult Swallows, 11 games
5. Meiji University, 10 games
5. Seibu Lions, 10 games
7. Orix Buffaloes, 9 games
8. Hosei University, 8 games
8. Chunichi Dragons, 8 games
(the next one is 7 games, a tie for Softbank Hawks, and for Waseda and Keio university)
I think this is fairly representative of my year -- I saw a lot of Fighters games and a lot of Marines games, a lot of Pacific League ball in general, and a lot of college baseball. The Giants games were all pretty much cheering against them -- the Fighters interleague and Japan Series, plus going to Jingu with the Tsubamegun guys to cheer against the Giants, plus going to Dragons games to do the special Yomiuri Taose cheers at the Tokyo Dome, and this also counted a few preseason games when I got free tickets to see the Marines-Giants and such.
I'm a little surprised to realize I didn't see the Rakuten Eagles more often (only 4 times). I think what happened is that I saw them on TV a lot, and this year I didn't see their minor-league team nearly as much as I did last year, basically.
Stadiums I saw the most games:
1. Meiji Jingu Stadium, 34 games
2. Tokyo Dome, 29 games
3. Chiba Marine Stadium, 17 games
4. Fighters Kamagaya Stadium, 7 games
4. Seibu Dome, 7 games
5. Koshien, 5 games
6. Sapporo Dome, 4 games
Jingu is being a little bit inflated by the fact that I often sit through two college baseball games in one day there.
I went to 18 different stadiums in 12 different prefectures on all 4 major islands of Japan, so that was pretty good.
My goals for 2010 in terms of watching games are:
1) Go to some Hokushinetsu/BCL games, definitely one in Niigata's new stadium
2) Go to Okinawa (this may not happen because of timing with a trip I'm taking back to the US, though, I won't get back until Feb 23)
3) Take a train to Hokkaido and see a game in Tohoku inaka somewhere on the way
4) See a home game for every minor-league team in Japan
5) See the Ibaraki Golden Golds
6) See more industrial league ball than just the Toshitaikou
7) See some college ball besides Tohto and Big 6
I *think* that's it. I should in theory add trying to see the Girls Pro League and trying to catch Eri Yoshida somewhere, but I'm not sure how serious I am about that. I think I want to go back to Koshien again next year now that I understand how it works, too, but we'll see.
And for the record, the hiatus in December mostly happened because I was having a very stressful time finishing up my job at the junior high school I was at, along with writing a lot elsewhere and not really having a lot to say here -- there doesn't seem to be a point in me translating articles anymore now that someone else is doing it, although I guess I could add some commentary on things. I still read baseball magazines and keep up with stuff, but December is a pretty dead month for actually doing things per se. However, I'm hoping to do a few things with the blog in the next month or two. We'll see. The offseason SUCKS.
Thursday, August 27, 2009
The Road To 100
My baseball-watching goal for this year was 100 games on all four major islands of Japan, in as many stadiums as possible. Going to the game in Kochi gave me the fourth major island (Shikoku), and my 15th stadium (which is my 22nd overall in Japan, I think)... and last night's game in Sagamihara gave me my 16th stadium this year.
I'll try to keep this list updated as I go along, and will also maybe add a "games I'm planning to go to" list too.
Also keep in mind this is only games I was actually at -- it doesn't count the other 30-40 games I watched on TV at home...
(Edited: November 22)
Deanna's Games Attended in 2009
122. November 22, U-26 NPB vs. College Players @ Tokyo Dome, exhibition game
121. November 5, Giants vs. Fighters @ Tokyo Dome, Japan Series 2009
120. November 4, Giants vs. Fighters @ Tokyo Dome, Japan Series 2009
119. November 3, Giants vs. Fighters @ Tokyo Dome, Japan Series 2009
118. November 1, Keio vs. Waseda @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
117. October 27, Hosei vs. Meiji @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
116. October 25, Meiji vs. Hosei @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
115. October 22, Giants vs. Dragons @ Tokyo Dome, Central League Playoffs
114. October 18, Waseda vs. Hosei @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
113. October 18, Meiji vs. Keio @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
112. October 17, Keio vs. Meiji @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
111. October 17, Hosei vs. Waseda @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
110. October 12, Swallows vs. Giants @ Jingu
109. October 11, Swallows vs. Dragons @ Jingu
108. October 10, Meiji vs. Tokyo @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
107. October 10, Rikkio vs. Waseda @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
106. October 6, Marines vs. Eagles @ Chiba Marine
105. October 4, Fighters vs. Marines @ Sapporo Dome
104. October 3, Fighters vs. Marines @ Sapporo Dome
103. October 1, Toyo vs. Chuo @ Jingu, Tohto University League
102. September 29, Swallows vs. Tigers @ Jingu
101. September 26, Meiji vs. Waseda @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
100. September 26, Hosei vs. Keio @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
99. September 23, Giants vs. Dragons @ Tokyo Dome
98. September 22, Fighters vs. Marines @ Kamagaya, minor league
97. September 21, Rikkio vs. Meiji @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
96. September 20, Buffaloes vs. Fighters @ Kyocera Dome Osaka
95. September 19, Buffaloes vs. Fighters @ Kyocera Dome Osaka
94. September 13, Fighters vs. Futures @ Kamagaya, minor league exhibition game
93. September 10, Lions vs. Fighters @ Seibu Dome
92. September 9, Lions vs. Fighters @ Seibu Dome
91. September 8, Lions vs. Fighters @ Seibu Dome
90. September 6, Eagles vs. Fighters @ Kleenex Miyagi
89. September 5, Eagles vs. Fighters @ Kleenex Miyagi
88. September 3, Marines vs. Fighters @ Chiba Marine
87. September 2, Marines vs. Fighters @ Chiba Marine
86. September 1, Marines vs. Fighters @ Chiba Marine
85. August 31, Honda vs. NTT Higashinihon @ Tokyo Dome, Toshitaikou industrial tournament
84. August 27, Marines vs. Hawks @ Chiba Marine
83. August 26, Shonan Sea Rex vs. Fighters @ Sagamihara, minor league
82. August 23, Kochi Fighting Dogs vs. Ehime Mandarin Pirates @ Kochi, Shikoku-Kyushu Island League
81. August 21, Hawks vs. Fighters @ Yahoo Dome
80. August 19, Nagasaki Saints vs. Kagawa Olive Guyners @ Sasebo, Shikoku-Kyushu Island League
79. August 17, Hanamaki Higashi vs. Yokohama Hayato @ Koshien, High School Tournament
78. August 17, Chukyodai Chukyo vs. Kwansei Gakuin @ Koshien, High School Tournament
77. August 16, Teikyo vs. Tsuruga Kehi @ Koshien, High School Tournament
76. August 16, Aomori Yamada vs. Nodai Niko @ Koshien, High School Tournament
75. August 15, Senkawa vs. Nihon Bunri @ Koshien, High School Tournament
74. August 13, Fighters vs. Buffaloes @ Tokyo Dome
73. August 12, Fighters vs. Buffaloes @ Tokyo Dome
72. August 11, Fighters vs. Buffaloes @ Tokyo Dome
71. August 4, Lions vs. Fighters @ Omiya
70. August 2, Swallows vs. Dragons @ Jingu
69. August 1, Fighters vs. Hawks @ Sapporo Dome
68. July 31, Fighters vs. Hawks @ Sapporo Dome
67. July 29, Marines vs. Fighters @ Chiba Marine
66. July 28, Giants vs. Dragons @ Tokyo Dome
65. July 22, Urawa Gakuin vs. Seibo Gakuen @ Omiya, Saitama Regional Highschool Tournament
64. July 15, Swallows vs. Giants @ Jingu
63. July 13, USA vs. Japan @ Tokyo Dome, Collegiate International Tournament
62. July 11, Marines vs. Searex @ Lotte Urawa, minor league
61. July 9, Lions vs. Fighters @ Seibu Dome
60. July 8, Lions vs. Fighters @ Seibu Dome
59. July 5, Fighters vs. Marines @ Kamagaya, minor league
58. July 4, Fighters vs. Marines @ Kamagaya, minor league
57. June 28, Marines vs. Fighters @ Chiba Marine
56. June 27, Marines vs. Fighters @ Chiba Marine
55. June 26, Marines vs. Fighters @ Chiba Marine
54. June 21, Carp vs. Fighters @ Mazda Zoom Zoom
53. June 20, Carp vs. Fighters @ Mazda Zoom Zoom
52. June 18, Swallows vs. Marines @ Jingu
51. June 14, Marines vs. Tigers @ Chiba Marine
50. June 13, Fuji vs. Soka @ Jingu, All-Japan College Tournament
49. June 13, Hosei vs. Kansai Kokusai @ Jingu, All-Japan College Tournament
48. June 8, Swallows vs. Fighters @ Jingu
47. June 7, Swallows vs. Fighters @ Jingu
46. June 6, Giants vs. Fighters @ Tokyo Dome
45. June 5, Giants vs. Fighters @ Tokyo Dome
44. June 1, Rikkio vs. Meiji @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 Rookie Tournament
43. June 1, Keio vs. Todai @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 Rookie Tournament
42. May 24, Hosei vs. Meiji @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
41. May 23, Marines vs. Dragons @ Chiba Marine
40. May 19, Lions vs. Dragons @ Omiya
39. May 16, Keio vs. Hosei @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
38. May 16, Waseda vs. Meiji @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
37. May 9, Marines vs. Eagles @ Chiba Marine
36. May 8, Giants vs. Dragons @ Tokyo Dome
35. May 7, Swallows vs. Tigers @ Jingu
34. May 6, Marines vs. Fighters @ Chiba Marine
33. May 5, Marines vs. Fighters @ Chiba Marine
32. May 4, Marines vs. Fighters @ Chiba Marine
31. May 2, Fighters vs. Futures @ Kamagaya, minor league exhibition game
30. April 30, Toyo vs. Kokugaku @ Jingu, Tohto University League
29. April 29, Marines vs. Buffaloes @ Chiba Marine
28. April 26, Fighters vs. Buffaloes @ Skymark
27. April 23, Fighters vs. Hawks @ Tokyo Dome
26. April 22, Fighters vs. Hawks @ Tokyo Dome
25. April 21, Fighters vs. Hawks @ Tokyo Dome
24. April 19, Lions vs. Fighters @ Seibu Dome
23. April 18, Lions vs. Fighters @ Seibu Dome
22. April 16, Swallows vs. Giants @ Jingu
21. April 11, Keio vs. Rikkio @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
20. April 11, Todai vs. Waseda @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
19. April 8, Fighters vs. Marines @ Tokyo Dome
18. April 7, Fighters vs. Marines @ Tokyo Dome
17. April 4, Marines vs. Fighters @ Lotte Urawa, minor league
16. April 3, Marines vs. Lions @ Chiba Marine
15. March 29, Giants vs. Marines @ Tokyo Dome, preseason game
14. March 28, Giants vs. Marines @ Tokyo Dome, preseason game
13. March 26, Swallows vs. Baystars @ Jingu, preseason game
12. March 21, Baystars vs. Fighters @ Yokohama Stadium, preseason game
11. March 19, Giants vs. Fighters @ Tokyo Dome, preseason game
10. March 18, Fighters vs. Buffaloes @ Kamagaya, preseason game
9. March 17, Fighters vs. Buffaloes @ Tokyo Dome, preseason game
8. March 15, Fighters vs. Marines @ Kamagaya, preseason minor league
7. March 11, Baystars vs. Marines @ Yokohama Stadium, preseason game
6. March 9, WBC Finals, Japan vs. Korea @ Tokyo Dome
5. March 8, WBC Game 5, Korea vs. China @ Tokyo Dome
4. March 7, WBC Game 4, Korea vs. Japan @ Tokyo Dome
3. March 6, WBC Game 2, Korea vs. Taipei @ Tokyo Dome
2. March 5, WBC Game 1, Japan vs. China @ Tokyo Dome
1. March 5, Marines vs. Fighters @ Lotte Urawa, preseason minor league
I should try to add links to these and see how many I actually managed to write up on here. This year I've spent so much time going to games that I have no time to actually blog about them -- basically, I've had a few times where I've thought "Gosh, I'd like to go to the game today, but I'm so behind on blogging, shouldn't I spend the evening catching up?" and then said, "Deanna, what the heck are you THINKING? You are NOT going to sit at home at your computer when you could be at the stadium. Don't be stupid."
I'll try to keep this list updated as I go along, and will also maybe add a "games I'm planning to go to" list too.
Also keep in mind this is only games I was actually at -- it doesn't count the other 30-40 games I watched on TV at home...
(Edited: November 22)
Deanna's Games Attended in 2009
122. November 22, U-26 NPB vs. College Players @ Tokyo Dome, exhibition game
121. November 5, Giants vs. Fighters @ Tokyo Dome, Japan Series 2009
120. November 4, Giants vs. Fighters @ Tokyo Dome, Japan Series 2009
119. November 3, Giants vs. Fighters @ Tokyo Dome, Japan Series 2009
118. November 1, Keio vs. Waseda @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
117. October 27, Hosei vs. Meiji @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
116. October 25, Meiji vs. Hosei @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
115. October 22, Giants vs. Dragons @ Tokyo Dome, Central League Playoffs
114. October 18, Waseda vs. Hosei @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
113. October 18, Meiji vs. Keio @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
112. October 17, Keio vs. Meiji @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
111. October 17, Hosei vs. Waseda @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
110. October 12, Swallows vs. Giants @ Jingu
109. October 11, Swallows vs. Dragons @ Jingu
108. October 10, Meiji vs. Tokyo @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
107. October 10, Rikkio vs. Waseda @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
106. October 6, Marines vs. Eagles @ Chiba Marine
105. October 4, Fighters vs. Marines @ Sapporo Dome
104. October 3, Fighters vs. Marines @ Sapporo Dome
103. October 1, Toyo vs. Chuo @ Jingu, Tohto University League
102. September 29, Swallows vs. Tigers @ Jingu
101. September 26, Meiji vs. Waseda @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
100. September 26, Hosei vs. Keio @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
99. September 23, Giants vs. Dragons @ Tokyo Dome
98. September 22, Fighters vs. Marines @ Kamagaya, minor league
97. September 21, Rikkio vs. Meiji @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
96. September 20, Buffaloes vs. Fighters @ Kyocera Dome Osaka
95. September 19, Buffaloes vs. Fighters @ Kyocera Dome Osaka
94. September 13, Fighters vs. Futures @ Kamagaya, minor league exhibition game
93. September 10, Lions vs. Fighters @ Seibu Dome
92. September 9, Lions vs. Fighters @ Seibu Dome
91. September 8, Lions vs. Fighters @ Seibu Dome
90. September 6, Eagles vs. Fighters @ Kleenex Miyagi
89. September 5, Eagles vs. Fighters @ Kleenex Miyagi
88. September 3, Marines vs. Fighters @ Chiba Marine
87. September 2, Marines vs. Fighters @ Chiba Marine
86. September 1, Marines vs. Fighters @ Chiba Marine
85. August 31, Honda vs. NTT Higashinihon @ Tokyo Dome, Toshitaikou industrial tournament
84. August 27, Marines vs. Hawks @ Chiba Marine
83. August 26, Shonan Sea Rex vs. Fighters @ Sagamihara, minor league
82. August 23, Kochi Fighting Dogs vs. Ehime Mandarin Pirates @ Kochi, Shikoku-Kyushu Island League
81. August 21, Hawks vs. Fighters @ Yahoo Dome
80. August 19, Nagasaki Saints vs. Kagawa Olive Guyners @ Sasebo, Shikoku-Kyushu Island League
79. August 17, Hanamaki Higashi vs. Yokohama Hayato @ Koshien, High School Tournament
78. August 17, Chukyodai Chukyo vs. Kwansei Gakuin @ Koshien, High School Tournament
77. August 16, Teikyo vs. Tsuruga Kehi @ Koshien, High School Tournament
76. August 16, Aomori Yamada vs. Nodai Niko @ Koshien, High School Tournament
75. August 15, Senkawa vs. Nihon Bunri @ Koshien, High School Tournament
74. August 13, Fighters vs. Buffaloes @ Tokyo Dome
73. August 12, Fighters vs. Buffaloes @ Tokyo Dome
72. August 11, Fighters vs. Buffaloes @ Tokyo Dome
71. August 4, Lions vs. Fighters @ Omiya
70. August 2, Swallows vs. Dragons @ Jingu
69. August 1, Fighters vs. Hawks @ Sapporo Dome
68. July 31, Fighters vs. Hawks @ Sapporo Dome
67. July 29, Marines vs. Fighters @ Chiba Marine
66. July 28, Giants vs. Dragons @ Tokyo Dome
65. July 22, Urawa Gakuin vs. Seibo Gakuen @ Omiya, Saitama Regional Highschool Tournament
64. July 15, Swallows vs. Giants @ Jingu
63. July 13, USA vs. Japan @ Tokyo Dome, Collegiate International Tournament
62. July 11, Marines vs. Searex @ Lotte Urawa, minor league
61. July 9, Lions vs. Fighters @ Seibu Dome
60. July 8, Lions vs. Fighters @ Seibu Dome
59. July 5, Fighters vs. Marines @ Kamagaya, minor league
58. July 4, Fighters vs. Marines @ Kamagaya, minor league
57. June 28, Marines vs. Fighters @ Chiba Marine
56. June 27, Marines vs. Fighters @ Chiba Marine
55. June 26, Marines vs. Fighters @ Chiba Marine
54. June 21, Carp vs. Fighters @ Mazda Zoom Zoom
53. June 20, Carp vs. Fighters @ Mazda Zoom Zoom
52. June 18, Swallows vs. Marines @ Jingu
51. June 14, Marines vs. Tigers @ Chiba Marine
50. June 13, Fuji vs. Soka @ Jingu, All-Japan College Tournament
49. June 13, Hosei vs. Kansai Kokusai @ Jingu, All-Japan College Tournament
48. June 8, Swallows vs. Fighters @ Jingu
47. June 7, Swallows vs. Fighters @ Jingu
46. June 6, Giants vs. Fighters @ Tokyo Dome
45. June 5, Giants vs. Fighters @ Tokyo Dome
44. June 1, Rikkio vs. Meiji @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 Rookie Tournament
43. June 1, Keio vs. Todai @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 Rookie Tournament
42. May 24, Hosei vs. Meiji @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
41. May 23, Marines vs. Dragons @ Chiba Marine
40. May 19, Lions vs. Dragons @ Omiya
39. May 16, Keio vs. Hosei @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
38. May 16, Waseda vs. Meiji @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
37. May 9, Marines vs. Eagles @ Chiba Marine
36. May 8, Giants vs. Dragons @ Tokyo Dome
35. May 7, Swallows vs. Tigers @ Jingu
34. May 6, Marines vs. Fighters @ Chiba Marine
33. May 5, Marines vs. Fighters @ Chiba Marine
32. May 4, Marines vs. Fighters @ Chiba Marine
31. May 2, Fighters vs. Futures @ Kamagaya, minor league exhibition game
30. April 30, Toyo vs. Kokugaku @ Jingu, Tohto University League
29. April 29, Marines vs. Buffaloes @ Chiba Marine
28. April 26, Fighters vs. Buffaloes @ Skymark
27. April 23, Fighters vs. Hawks @ Tokyo Dome
26. April 22, Fighters vs. Hawks @ Tokyo Dome
25. April 21, Fighters vs. Hawks @ Tokyo Dome
24. April 19, Lions vs. Fighters @ Seibu Dome
23. April 18, Lions vs. Fighters @ Seibu Dome
22. April 16, Swallows vs. Giants @ Jingu
21. April 11, Keio vs. Rikkio @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
20. April 11, Todai vs. Waseda @ Jingu, Tokyo Big 6 University League
19. April 8, Fighters vs. Marines @ Tokyo Dome
18. April 7, Fighters vs. Marines @ Tokyo Dome
17. April 4, Marines vs. Fighters @ Lotte Urawa, minor league
16. April 3, Marines vs. Lions @ Chiba Marine
15. March 29, Giants vs. Marines @ Tokyo Dome, preseason game
14. March 28, Giants vs. Marines @ Tokyo Dome, preseason game
13. March 26, Swallows vs. Baystars @ Jingu, preseason game
12. March 21, Baystars vs. Fighters @ Yokohama Stadium, preseason game
11. March 19, Giants vs. Fighters @ Tokyo Dome, preseason game
10. March 18, Fighters vs. Buffaloes @ Kamagaya, preseason game
9. March 17, Fighters vs. Buffaloes @ Tokyo Dome, preseason game
8. March 15, Fighters vs. Marines @ Kamagaya, preseason minor league
7. March 11, Baystars vs. Marines @ Yokohama Stadium, preseason game
6. March 9, WBC Finals, Japan vs. Korea @ Tokyo Dome
5. March 8, WBC Game 5, Korea vs. China @ Tokyo Dome
4. March 7, WBC Game 4, Korea vs. Japan @ Tokyo Dome
3. March 6, WBC Game 2, Korea vs. Taipei @ Tokyo Dome
2. March 5, WBC Game 1, Japan vs. China @ Tokyo Dome
1. March 5, Marines vs. Fighters @ Lotte Urawa, preseason minor league
I should try to add links to these and see how many I actually managed to write up on here. This year I've spent so much time going to games that I have no time to actually blog about them -- basically, I've had a few times where I've thought "Gosh, I'd like to go to the game today, but I'm so behind on blogging, shouldn't I spend the evening catching up?" and then said, "Deanna, what the heck are you THINKING? You are NOT going to sit at home at your computer when you could be at the stadium. Don't be stupid."
Thursday, March 12, 2009
Hanshin Tigers Fans Conspire to Throw Glico Man Into The Dotonbori River
OSAKA, JAPAN -- Some thought that finding the Colonel Sanders statue was going to help Hanshin capture another Japan Series pennant.
However, a majority of Tigers fans disagree.
"I think he should have stayed buried at the bottom of the river," claimed one man, who thought the sight of the Colonel with no hands was "a travesty".
"The Boston Red Sox were able to win a World Series title without having to dig up Babe Ruth. Why should the Tigers be any different?"
Several fans have declared that the only way to rectify this wrong is to bury a new icon at the bottom of the Dotonbori river. As KFC restaurants in the Kansai region enacted a rule saying that no KFC restaurant can display a Colonel Sanders statue outside the store or without being properly bolted down within the store, Tigers fans would have a difficult time replacing the legendary entrepreneur.
Randy Bass, now comfortably in his second term as an Oklahoma senator, was not available for comment, but it is assumed he has no desire to be thrown into the river himself.
Thus it has been rumored that the only possible substitute for the Colonel would be another famous Dotonbori icon, Glico Man.
"If you squint," said one Hanshin fan, "Glico Man does look an awful lot like Kevin Mench."
Nobody is quite certain how the Hanshin fans will manage to dismantle Glico Man from his current position, but if there is one thing that has been established over the years, it is that one should never underestimate the potential power created by combining Hanshin fans with large amounts of alcohol.
However, a majority of Tigers fans disagree.
"I think he should have stayed buried at the bottom of the river," claimed one man, who thought the sight of the Colonel with no hands was "a travesty".
"The Boston Red Sox were able to win a World Series title without having to dig up Babe Ruth. Why should the Tigers be any different?"
Several fans have declared that the only way to rectify this wrong is to bury a new icon at the bottom of the Dotonbori river. As KFC restaurants in the Kansai region enacted a rule saying that no KFC restaurant can display a Colonel Sanders statue outside the store or without being properly bolted down within the store, Tigers fans would have a difficult time replacing the legendary entrepreneur.
Randy Bass, now comfortably in his second term as an Oklahoma senator, was not available for comment, but it is assumed he has no desire to be thrown into the river himself.
Thus it has been rumored that the only possible substitute for the Colonel would be another famous Dotonbori icon, Glico Man.
"If you squint," said one Hanshin fan, "Glico Man does look an awful lot like Kevin Mench."
Nobody is quite certain how the Hanshin fans will manage to dismantle Glico Man from his current position, but if there is one thing that has been established over the years, it is that one should never underestimate the potential power created by combining Hanshin fans with large amounts of alcohol.
Friday, January 02, 2009
The Asahi Shinbun Nails It
You rarely see me do a post here that is just a link to an article elsewhere, but this one had to be done:
From Your Friendly Neighborhood Sports Desk: 2009 as we'd like to see it
Seriously, this article completely and totally nails the silliness of the Japanese sports scene and media. Go read it. A few highlights:
I have to say, as an aside, that I've been really delighted with the way the English newspapers in Japan covered Japanese baseball this past year. The writers are a really nice group of guys, too.
From Your Friendly Neighborhood Sports Desk: 2009 as we'd like to see it
Seriously, this article completely and totally nails the silliness of the Japanese sports scene and media. Go read it. A few highlights:
"A much-heralded Japanese high school baseball phenom effectively states, "It's been a dream of mine to play for the Rakuten Eagles--I really hope the Yomiuri Giants don't draft me."
The next sports phenom in Japan does not get hung with the "Prince" moniker. We've had the "Handkerchief Prince" (pitcher Yuki Saito) and the "Shy Prince" (golfer Ryo Ishikawa). Time to come up with a new silly obsession.
Speaking of Buffed sluggers, we'd like to see the recently retired Kazuhiro Kiyohara stay retired. Athletes these days seem to be a little confused on the whole concept of retirement, with the likes of NFL quarterback Brett Favre announcing they are quitting, only to "un-retire" when overcome by the urge to strap on the pads again. Anyway, we think Kiyohara is well past his sell-by date and should have retired four or five years ago--those that read the daily box scores probably think he did.
I have to say, as an aside, that I've been really delighted with the way the English newspapers in Japan covered Japanese baseball this past year. The writers are a really nice group of guys, too.
Wednesday, December 31, 2008
A Picture Is Worth 2008 Words
Happy New Year 2009, everyone. May you all spend as much time watching baseball as possible. I certainly did:
77 games attended, between minors, majors, college ball, etc.
Fighters games: 26 (counting minors)
Marines games: 20 (also counting minors)
Baystars games: 15 (but I only cheered for them at 11)
Dragons games: 8 (and I only cheered for them at 6)
...Carp games: 1 (in Hiroshima. Man, I seriously neglected them)
Pitcher I saw start the most often: Lotte's Shunsuke Watanabe, 8 times
Runner-up: 5 times, Fighters' Ryan Glynn.
(Technically, Kazuhito Tadano and Shaggy Shugo Fujii and Hiro-chan Kobayashi were also 5 but due to split-squad and rainouts, I'm not counting them)
Number of different stadiums: 17
Teams I saw home games of: 12/12 (yes, every major-league team in Japan)
Stadium I went to the most: Tokyo Dome, 17 games
1st Base side: 22 games
3rd Base side: 50 games
Neither: 5 games. Yeah.
Days of week:
Sunday: 30 games
Monday: 20 games
Tuesday: 5 games
Wednedsay: 8 games
Thursday: 3 games
Friday: 7 games
Saturday: 4 games
Which makes sense, given that I had Sunday/Monday weekends.
42 day games, 35 night games.
There's certainly more stats I could pull out of this, I'm sure.
I wonder if I'll go to MORE games in 2009 or not. It's kind of a scary thought, isn't it?
77 games attended, between minors, majors, college ball, etc.
Fighters games: 26 (counting minors)
Marines games: 20 (also counting minors)
Baystars games: 15 (but I only cheered for them at 11)
Dragons games: 8 (and I only cheered for them at 6)
...Carp games: 1 (in Hiroshima. Man, I seriously neglected them)
Pitcher I saw start the most often: Lotte's Shunsuke Watanabe, 8 times
Runner-up: 5 times, Fighters' Ryan Glynn.
(Technically, Kazuhito Tadano and Shaggy Shugo Fujii and Hiro-chan Kobayashi were also 5 but due to split-squad and rainouts, I'm not counting them)
Number of different stadiums: 17
Teams I saw home games of: 12/12 (yes, every major-league team in Japan)
Stadium I went to the most: Tokyo Dome, 17 games
1st Base side: 22 games
3rd Base side: 50 games
Neither: 5 games. Yeah.
Days of week:
Sunday: 30 games
Monday: 20 games
Tuesday: 5 games
Wednedsay: 8 games
Thursday: 3 games
Friday: 7 games
Saturday: 4 games
Which makes sense, given that I had Sunday/Monday weekends.
42 day games, 35 night games.
There's certainly more stats I could pull out of this, I'm sure.
I wonder if I'll go to MORE games in 2009 or not. It's kind of a scary thought, isn't it?
Thursday, December 25, 2008
Happy Holidays, From My Neighbors
It's really bizarre living in Philly sometimes, but this is seriously on the door of one of my neighbors' apartments down the hall:
Too funny not to post.
(If you don't get it, see here, among others.)
Hope you are all enjoying whatever you celebrate over this week!
Too funny not to post.
(If you don't get it, see here, among others.)
Hope you are all enjoying whatever you celebrate over this week!
Friday, August 01, 2008
I'm a movie star, apparently
(If this is showing up on your RSS reader and you're wondering why, it's because I had it saved as a draft for the last 2 years. Man, I am ABSENTMINDED sometimes on these things. No wonder I couldn't find the post. I felt a little embarassed about this afterwards, to be honest.)
A few days ago, my buddy Michael Westbay was interviewed for a documentary about Japanese baseball, called Land of the Rising Fastball. The director, Lance Miccio, was looking for someone he could talk to about the fans here, and Westbay was like "You have GOT to interview Deanna, she's crazy about baseball here and she spends all of her time out in the stands with the crazy fans."
So this afternoon, since I didn't have classes until 6pm, I wandered down to Shinjuku and met up with Lance and his staff (ok, just two guys, a cameraman/producer and an assistant). We went to a shrine near Chuo-koen for filming, because he wanted something "Japan-like" as the backdrop, if not a stadium itself. They explained to me a bit about the project; he already had talked to Bobby Valentine and friends, and some people like Sachio Kinugasa and Masanori Murakami and Junzo Sekine and all. The cameraman, Azuma-san, is a Japanese guy based out of California, so his English is flawless, and the assistant, whose name I forgot, is a Hiroshima Carp fan, so I chattered with him about the stadium and whatnot.
And well, they filmed me talking for about an hour and a half. Lance just asked questions and had me ramble. The strange thing is, I guess I talked about the fans and the ouendan and all for about 20 minutes, and then the rest of it, he just had me talk about Koshien, the Olympics, the WBC, Soukeisen, various other stuff. He wanted me to talk about Yu Darvish and I probably should have refused, but didn't for some reason. In all honesty I can't remember everything I talked about, but it was just a ton of random baseball stuff. Not what I expected, but not bad.
They had asked me to bring a bunch of baseball gear, so I brought my Fighters cheering props bag, complete with signboards and wristbands and towels and whatnot. I showed off the lyrics sheets, sang the Hichori Morimoto cheer on camera, and also showed my scorecard book. The Japanese guys were just floored, like "WTF do you mean you have only been living in Japan for one year, how the hell do you know so much? Why can you write such good kanji?"
I hope I don't look too stupid in the movie, but Lance said that he was glad I said a lot of the stuff I did, he says I'll save him some narration time later. We'll see, I can't imagine my segments will be interesting enough to take up a big part of it. I may help him again when he comes back to Japan, I offered to help them breach a fan section for footage if they want. Oh, and oddly, they were in Fukuoka for the Fighters game on Tuesday, the day after I was there. WTF!
Assistant-san took a bunch of photos before/during the shooting...
The guys figure out a good way to set up my cheering stuff for some shots.
Me with Lance-director.
I'm on candid camera!
The most difficult parts of this were:
1) Looking at Lance instead of looking at the camera -- I guess it gets a good angle
2) Repeating his question in my answers -- apparently a documentary thing
I don't know when the movie will be out, and it's just a small-scale documentary as far as I know, and obviously I'm not one of the famous names on the project, but hey, it was an interesting experience. I was trying really hard not to be nervous; this seems to be yet another step in the right direction.
I just hope I didn't screw anything up too badly...
A few days ago, my buddy Michael Westbay was interviewed for a documentary about Japanese baseball, called Land of the Rising Fastball. The director, Lance Miccio, was looking for someone he could talk to about the fans here, and Westbay was like "You have GOT to interview Deanna, she's crazy about baseball here and she spends all of her time out in the stands with the crazy fans."
So this afternoon, since I didn't have classes until 6pm, I wandered down to Shinjuku and met up with Lance and his staff (ok, just two guys, a cameraman/producer and an assistant). We went to a shrine near Chuo-koen for filming, because he wanted something "Japan-like" as the backdrop, if not a stadium itself. They explained to me a bit about the project; he already had talked to Bobby Valentine and friends, and some people like Sachio Kinugasa and Masanori Murakami and Junzo Sekine and all. The cameraman, Azuma-san, is a Japanese guy based out of California, so his English is flawless, and the assistant, whose name I forgot, is a Hiroshima Carp fan, so I chattered with him about the stadium and whatnot.
And well, they filmed me talking for about an hour and a half. Lance just asked questions and had me ramble. The strange thing is, I guess I talked about the fans and the ouendan and all for about 20 minutes, and then the rest of it, he just had me talk about Koshien, the Olympics, the WBC, Soukeisen, various other stuff. He wanted me to talk about Yu Darvish and I probably should have refused, but didn't for some reason. In all honesty I can't remember everything I talked about, but it was just a ton of random baseball stuff. Not what I expected, but not bad.
They had asked me to bring a bunch of baseball gear, so I brought my Fighters cheering props bag, complete with signboards and wristbands and towels and whatnot. I showed off the lyrics sheets, sang the Hichori Morimoto cheer on camera, and also showed my scorecard book. The Japanese guys were just floored, like "WTF do you mean you have only been living in Japan for one year, how the hell do you know so much? Why can you write such good kanji?"
I hope I don't look too stupid in the movie, but Lance said that he was glad I said a lot of the stuff I did, he says I'll save him some narration time later. We'll see, I can't imagine my segments will be interesting enough to take up a big part of it. I may help him again when he comes back to Japan, I offered to help them breach a fan section for footage if they want. Oh, and oddly, they were in Fukuoka for the Fighters game on Tuesday, the day after I was there. WTF!
Assistant-san took a bunch of photos before/during the shooting...
The guys figure out a good way to set up my cheering stuff for some shots.
Me with Lance-director.
I'm on candid camera!
The most difficult parts of this were:
1) Looking at Lance instead of looking at the camera -- I guess it gets a good angle
2) Repeating his question in my answers -- apparently a documentary thing
I don't know when the movie will be out, and it's just a small-scale documentary as far as I know, and obviously I'm not one of the famous names on the project, but hey, it was an interesting experience. I was trying really hard not to be nervous; this seems to be yet another step in the right direction.
I just hope I didn't screw anything up too badly...
Tuesday, July 08, 2008
Happy birthday, Shunichi Nemoto
Alright, so this goes back a few weeks to when Chiba Lotte Marines second baseman Shunichi Nemoto's at-bat music became the title song by one of the latest fabricated J-Pop boy groups, 羞恥心 (Shuuchishin, which means "shame"). If you haven't seen/heard it before, here's a Youtube video of the PV. If you go to about 1:23 in the video, that's the part they always play for Nemoto's at-bats: "shuuchishin, shuuchishin, oretachi wa..."
Anyway, for whatever reason, I had started kinda humming along to it during his at-bats, only I would be singing, "Shunichi, Shunichi, oretachi wa..."
And so, uh, in honor of today being Shunichi Nemoto's birthday, I went ahead and actually wrote the REST of the lyrics. Incase it isn't obvious, I don't really write parody lyrics in Japanese all that often (read: never), so bear with me. I assure you that despite how retarded my lyrics sound, they barely do justice to the complete inanity of the original song.
Thanks to Jeff (the2belo) for sanity-checking for me.
"Shunichi"
(to the tune of Shuuchishin/羞恥心, by the group of the same name)
(Parody lyrics by Deanna "Marinerd" Rubin)
若い選手はすばらしい
Wakai senshu wa subarashii
スタジアム駆け抜けろ
SUTAJIAMU kakenukero
走って守って打っても豪快のさ
Hashitte mamotte utte mo goukai no sa
ロッテのみんな好きけれど、
LOTTE no minna suki dakedo
一番いいのが根元
Ichiban ii no ga Nemoto
だから毎日見に行くのさ
Dakara mainichi mi ni iku no sa
内野ゴロされた セカンドの
Naiya goro sareta SEKANDO no
全て掴めば 勝利を守るはず
Subete tsukameba shouri wo mamoru hazu
※バンザイ バンザイ バンザイ バンザイ
BANZAI BANZAI BANZAI BANZAI
負けないで
Makenai de
最下位なんかは似合わない
Saikai nanka wa, niawanai
優勝戦に さあ目指せ
Yuushousen ni saa mezase!
△俊一俊一
Shunichi, Shunichi
俺たちは
Oretachi wa
外野いつもどんな時も
Gaiya itsumo donna toki mo
応援したいさあ
Ouen shitai saa
歓声 歓声 歓声
Kansei kansei kansei
夢で生きてる
Yume de ikiteru
上手く野球できないかも
Umaku yakyuu dekinai kamo
笑いたければ笑うがいい
Waraitakereba warau ga ii
俺の大切旗ふるよ
Ore no taisetsu hata furu yo
明日相手を倒すかな？
Ashita aite wo taosu kana?
俊一！ロッテ！
Shunichi! Lotte!
俊一！ロッテ！
Shunichi! Lotte!
(repeat ※ and △ sections)
(English... which, try as I might, sounds stupid no matter how you cut it:)
Young players are awesome
Running through the stadium,
Their defense and hitting is exciting.
I like all of the Lotte players,
But the one I like best is Nemoto,
So I go to watch him play every day.
If an infield grounder is hit to second base
He grabs them all and protects the victory!
Banzai, banzai, banzai, banzai
Don't lose the game
Last place doesn't suit you guys
Let's aim for the championship!
Shunichi, Shunichi
We all want to cheer for you from the outfield
Anytime, anywhere
Hear our song, hear our song, hear our song
And we can live our dreams.
Maybe these guys can't play baseball that well
So laugh if you want to
We'll all go and wave our flags
...hm, do you think they can defeat tomorrow's opponent?
Shunichi! Lotte! (x2)
根元選手へ
お誕生日おめでとうございます。尊敬しています。
だからこの馬鹿みたい替え歌が本当の羞恥心持ってます。
I am trying to figure out exactly how many drinks it would take before I'd be willing to sing this one at karaoke. Hmm.
Anyway, for whatever reason, I had started kinda humming along to it during his at-bats, only I would be singing, "Shunichi, Shunichi, oretachi wa..."
And so, uh, in honor of today being Shunichi Nemoto's birthday, I went ahead and actually wrote the REST of the lyrics. Incase it isn't obvious, I don't really write parody lyrics in Japanese all that often (read: never), so bear with me. I assure you that despite how retarded my lyrics sound, they barely do justice to the complete inanity of the original song.
Thanks to Jeff (the2belo) for sanity-checking for me.
"Shunichi"
(to the tune of Shuuchishin/羞恥心, by the group of the same name)
(Parody lyrics by Deanna "Marinerd" Rubin)
若い選手はすばらしい
Wakai senshu wa subarashii
スタジアム駆け抜けろ
SUTAJIAMU kakenukero
走って守って打っても豪快のさ
Hashitte mamotte utte mo goukai no sa
ロッテのみんな好きけれど、
LOTTE no minna suki dakedo
一番いいのが根元
Ichiban ii no ga Nemoto
だから毎日見に行くのさ
Dakara mainichi mi ni iku no sa
内野ゴロされた セカンドの
Naiya goro sareta SEKANDO no
全て掴めば 勝利を守るはず
Subete tsukameba shouri wo mamoru hazu
※バンザイ バンザイ バンザイ バンザイ
BANZAI BANZAI BANZAI BANZAI
負けないで
Makenai de
最下位なんかは似合わない
Saikai nanka wa, niawanai
優勝戦に さあ目指せ
Yuushousen ni saa mezase!
△俊一俊一
Shunichi, Shunichi
俺たちは
Oretachi wa
外野いつもどんな時も
Gaiya itsumo donna toki mo
応援したいさあ
Ouen shitai saa
歓声 歓声 歓声
Kansei kansei kansei
夢で生きてる
Yume de ikiteru
上手く野球できないかも
Umaku yakyuu dekinai kamo
笑いたければ笑うがいい
Waraitakereba warau ga ii
俺の大切旗ふるよ
Ore no taisetsu hata furu yo
明日相手を倒すかな？
Ashita aite wo taosu kana?
俊一！ロッテ！
Shunichi! Lotte!
俊一！ロッテ！
Shunichi! Lotte!
(repeat ※ and △ sections)
(English... which, try as I might, sounds stupid no matter how you cut it:)
Young players are awesome
Running through the stadium,
Their defense and hitting is exciting.
I like all of the Lotte players,
But the one I like best is Nemoto,
So I go to watch him play every day.
If an infield grounder is hit to second base
He grabs them all and protects the victory!
Banzai, banzai, banzai, banzai
Don't lose the game
Last place doesn't suit you guys
Let's aim for the championship!
Shunichi, Shunichi
We all want to cheer for you from the outfield
Anytime, anywhere
Hear our song, hear our song, hear our song
And we can live our dreams.
Maybe these guys can't play baseball that well
So laugh if you want to
We'll all go and wave our flags
...hm, do you think they can defeat tomorrow's opponent?
Shunichi! Lotte! (x2)
根元選手へ
お誕生日おめでとうございます。尊敬しています。
だからこの馬鹿みたい替え歌が本当の羞恥心持ってます。
I am trying to figure out exactly how many drinks it would take before I'd be willing to sing this one at karaoke. Hmm.
Thursday, April 03, 2008
MLB Flakes
A few days ago I mentioned that Calbee 2008 Pro Yakyu chips are officially out. Given that BBM isn't releasing the 2008 Series 1 cards until April 17th (at least that's what the kind folks down at the Jimbocho branch of Mint told me last weekend when I stopped by), Calbee is what we've got for now. I was at the supermarket last night for my normal grocery shopping trip, and grabbed three bags of Pro Yakyu Chips because I'm incredibly weak-willed. (Cards: Hiroshima's Masayuki Hasegawa, Hawks' Tsuyoshi Wada, and Chunichi's Kazuhiro Wada. Whatta lotta Wada.)
So I'm thinking about how unhealthy it is to bundle baseball cards with potato chips, and I round the corner to the breakfast/tea aisle, and I can't believe what I see on display there:
Yes, this is some kind of tie-in from Kellogg's. As far as I can tell, they're putting MLB baseball cards inside BREAKFAST CEREAL boxes. Which isn't all too strange in some senses; I certainly remember wanting to collect cereal toys when I was a kid (and my mom telling me no). But as an answer to Pro Yakyu Chips it's pretty funny!
There's also a chance to get "MLB Rare Goods" like baseballs and jerseys.
"Corn Frosties", "Genmai Flakes", "Frostie Crunch", and "Coco-kun no Chocowa".
I've been requested to bring back some genmai flakes for a friend when I go to the US in a week or two anyway. This is a perfect excuse to buy them! (But I didn't think of that last night.)
The only thing that'd be better is if they had Japanese player tie-ins for these, like Fukumori Flakes or Fukudome Frosties. Although, come to think of it, given the Mariners' opening day game, "Fukumori Flakes" isn't really that far off.
(zing!)
So I'm thinking about how unhealthy it is to bundle baseball cards with potato chips, and I round the corner to the breakfast/tea aisle, and I can't believe what I see on display there:
Yes, this is some kind of tie-in from Kellogg's. As far as I can tell, they're putting MLB baseball cards inside BREAKFAST CEREAL boxes. Which isn't all too strange in some senses; I certainly remember wanting to collect cereal toys when I was a kid (and my mom telling me no). But as an answer to Pro Yakyu Chips it's pretty funny!
There's also a chance to get "MLB Rare Goods" like baseballs and jerseys.
"Corn Frosties", "Genmai Flakes", "Frostie Crunch", and "Coco-kun no Chocowa".
I've been requested to bring back some genmai flakes for a friend when I go to the US in a week or two anyway. This is a perfect excuse to buy them! (But I didn't think of that last night.)
The only thing that'd be better is if they had Japanese player tie-ins for these, like Fukumori Flakes or Fukudome Frosties. Although, come to think of it, given the Mariners' opening day game, "Fukumori Flakes" isn't really that far off.
(zing!)
Thursday, January 31, 2008
Happy Hichori Morimoto Day!
(I did this last year too, so why not?)
It's Hichori Morimoto's 27th birthday today!
As you know, Hichori is one of my favorite players in the entire world. He's a crazy good baseball player and a crazy funny person in general. Like his predecessor in the Fighters centerfield spot Tsuyoshi Shinjo, Hichori has a goal of making people laugh and enjoy baseball, whether it's fans, teammates, or whoever.
Sadly, unlike last year when lots of Hichori-isms were showing up in the press, this year's highschool slugger boy Nakata Sho is completely dominating the Fighters media (and you have no idea how annoying it's getting), so I'm not entirely sure exactly what Hichori is up to, although he was apparently spotted in Hawaii taking batting practice a few weeks ago, hanging out with Shinjo. Cool.
So, instead of rounding up a "What's up with Hichori" for Hichori day this year, I'm going to translate his Wikipedia page into English! Yay!
(I'm leaving the Japanese in this post for now because I'm sure I'll want to tweak my translation in the future and it's easier to do it this way than to keep looking back and forth)
森本 稀哲（もりもと ひちょり、1981年1月31日 - ）は、東京都荒川区出身のプロ野球選手。ポジションは外野手で、主に中堅手。北海道日本ハムファイターズ所属。真面目でとにかく明るい性格とスキンヘッドが特徴。イメージカラーは緑。
Hichori Morimoto (1/31/1981 -) is a pro baseball player from the Arakawa area of Tokyo. He is an outfielder for the Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters, primarily playing center field. He has a bright and interesting personality and is known for having a shaven head. His associated color is green.
在日コリアン（韓国籍）の父と、日本人の母を持つ。生家は東京都荒川区西日暮里で焼肉店「絵理花」を営んでいる。
小学生の時、髪の毛はじめ体毛すべてが突如抜け落ち生えてこなくなる原因不明の難病にかかった。現在はこの病気を克服しているが、当時の苦労を忘れないように、そして同じ病気で苦しむ人に勇気を与えるためにと毎日自身で剃刀を当ててスキンヘッドにし続けている。
His father is a resident (zainichi) Korean and his mother is Japanese. They run a yakiniku restaurant called "Erika" in the Nippori neighborhood of Tokyo where Hichori grew up.
When he was in elementary school, suddenly all of his hair fell out due to an unknown disease. He has gotten better from the disease now, but in order to remember those times and also in honor of other people who have illnesses that cause hair to fall out, he shaves his head every day.
帝京高校では1998年に主将、遊撃手として夏の甲子園に出場。3回戦・浜田高校戦で8回に和田毅（現福岡ソフトバンクホークス）からバックスクリーンへの同点本塁打を放つも敗退。高校通算34本塁打。同年秋のドラフト4位で日本ハムに入団し、入団当初は内野手であったが外野手に転向した。
In 1998, Hichori was captain and shortstop for Teikyo High School's baseball team, which played in the Summer Koshien tournament. In the third round of the tournament, playing against Shimane Prefecture's Hamada High School, their team was down 2-0 in the 8th inning, and Hichori hit a 2-run homer off of Tsuyoshi Wada to tie the game (though Hamada went on to win the game anyway). Hichori hit 34 home runs total during his high school career, and was drafted by the Fighters in the fourth round of the 1998 draft, and they converted him to an outfielder.
2年目の2000年、1軍初出場。その後打撃で伸び悩むが、2005年、課題だった打撃が向上し、初の100試合以上に出場。翌年の飛躍につなげる。
He made his debut at the top team level in 2000, but it wasn't until 2005 that he really improved enough to stick around and play in over 100 games.
2006年
4月下旬から1番・左翼手に定着し、初の規定打席に到達。パシフィック・リーグ最多得点を記録。チームメイトの新庄剛志・稲葉篤紀とともにゴールデングラブ賞を受賞し、同チームで外野手部門を独占した。オールスターゲームに初選出されている。
2006 -
- At the end of April he established himself as the leadoff hitter and regular left fielder. He led the Pacific League that year in runs scored, and along with his teammates Atsunori Inaba (RF) and Tsuyoshi Shinjo (CF), won an all-Fighters Golden Glove outfield. 2006 also was Hichori's first time being elected to play in the All-Star game.
2007年
前年で引退した新庄剛志に代わり中堅手に定着。不動の1番打者として全イニング出場し、初の打率3割を記録。24試合連続安打はパ・リーグ歴代6位タイ、球団では大下弘と並び最多タイ記録。
2007 -
- Hichori inherited uniform number #1 from the recently-retired Tsuyoshi Shinjo. He batted leadoff and played in every single inning of every single game for the Fighters (ed. note: this is not strictly true -- he DH'ed in one game, the "dare aitsu" game of September 30, but it's true he never missed a game or an at-bat), and batted .300 for the first time. His 24-game hitting streak was tied for the 6th best in Pacific League history and tied for the team best with Hiroshi Oshita.
2年連続で最多得票でゴールデングラブ賞と、初のベストナインを獲得。補殺数は両リーグ1位の15個を記録した。
- He also led the Golden Glove voting for the second year in a row, made the Best Nine team for the first time, and led all of NPB outfielders in assists with 15. (ed. note: No joke. The next highest were 10 from Yokohama's Kinjoh and Rakuten's Teppei.)
同じ歳で元チームメイトの實松一成（現読売ジャイアンツ）とは親友である。また、新庄からは弟分のように可愛がられており、森本を自らの背番号1の後継者に指名した。
He is still close friends with former teammate and fellow 1998 draftee Kazunari Sanematsu (now with the Giants -- and thank god for that). Also, he feels like a younger brother to Shinjo, who gave him the uniform number #1 and named him as his "successor".
Uniform numbers
- 53 (in 1999)
- 46 (2000-2006)
- 1 (2007-)
Titles / Awards / Records
Titles:
- Golden Glove, 2006 & 2007
- Best Nine - 2007, OF
Awards:
- All-star game voting (2 times, 2006 / 2007)
- All-star game "new player award" - 2006
- All-star game MVP - 2007
- Japan Series MVP - 2006
Records:
- Every inning of every game - 2007
- 24-game hitting streak - tied for 6th in PL history, tied for top of Fighters team history
- 2 leadoff home runs in consecutive games (4/25/06, 4/26/06 vs. Seibu), the 11th person to do so
- Stole home during an All-Star game, the 3rd person to ever do so
- 6 hits in a game (9/17/2006 against Chiba), tying a league record
Firsts:
- Debut game: 8/2/2000, against Seibu at the Seibu dome, came in as a pinch-hitter in the 10th inning, struck out against Shinji Mori
- First starting lineup appearance: 8/10/2000, against Kintetsu at the Osaka Dome, batting first, playing left field
- First hit: same game (8/10/2000), in the third inning off Narciso Elvira
- First home run: same game, 9th inning, off Shinji Udaka
- First RBI: same game, it was that home run
- First stolen base: 7/18/2001, against Seibu at the Tokyo Dome -- in the 2nd inning, pitcher Daisuke Matsuzaka, catcher Tsutomu Itoh
Trivia:
-「ひちょり」の命名は父による。「稀哲」の韓国語での発音「ヒチョル」から取られた。
- His father named him "Hee-chol" in Korean, and then they made the kanji for "Hichori" in Japanese.
- 入団当時「ひろより」と振り仮名を振ってあった名鑑もあった。また、「稀哲」を「秘哲」と誤植していた名鑑もあった。
- When he first joined the team they misprinted the kanji for his name, thinking it was "Hiroyori".
- 小学生時代に、当時好きだったクラスメイトの女子から「（ドラゴンボールの）ピッコロみたい」と言われた事がある。
- "He looks like Piccolo (from Dragonball Z)!" said female classmates of his in elementary school.
- 高校時代、登校日にはいつも両親手製の焼肉弁当（肉・タレは店で使うものと同じ）を持参し、他の野球部員と交換していた。仲間に焼肉弁当を堪能してもらおうという計らいによる。
- During high school, his parents always made him a yakiniku bento for lunch, which he would bring to school and trade/share with his other baseball teammates. Everyone liked this arrangement :)
- 2006年10月12日のパ・リーグプレーオフ第2ステージ・対福岡ソフトバンクホークス2回戦の9回裏、内野で送球が逸れた際に二塁からホームインし、サヨナラ勝利でリーグ優勝を決めた。優勝の瞬間については「何が何だか分からなかったが、稲葉さんを見たら『喜びを通り越した怖い顔』をしていたので、優勝したことに気付いた」と語っている。
- On 10/12/2006, during the second game of the Pacific League Second Stage playoffs, in the 9th inning, he ran home from second base to score the deciding (and only) run of the game, which won the league championship for the Fighters. He said of that moment, "With all that happened, I best remember seeing Inaba's face, which was of such complete joy that I realized we were the champions."
- 森本には専用の応援歌があるが、2006年のアジアシリーズ決勝戦（11月12日）の第4打席ではファンから後継者という期待を込め、新庄の応援歌の替え歌が演奏された（歌詞中の「メジャー」を「鎌ケ谷」、「新庄」を「稀哲」としていた）。
- During the final game of the 2006 Asia Series, fans sang a parody of Shinjo's player cheer song to cheer for Hichori, replacing the words "Major" with "Kamagaya" and "Shinjo" with "Hichori".
- 2006年11月18日、長袖を千葉県鎌ケ谷市・ファイターズスタジアムに送ってしまったため。札幌市で行われた優勝パレードに半袖のユニフォーム姿で登場した。
- Hichori's long sleeves were supposedly left in Fighters Town Kamagaya and thus he wore short sleeves for the Fighters victory parade in Sapporo on 11/18/2006.
- 2007年3月18日、北海道新幹線大使に任命。
- On 3/18/2007, he was an ambassador for the Hokkaido Shinkansen project.
- 2007年シーズンから、新庄の後を継ぐかのようにタイムリーヒット及び本塁打に「○○ヒッツ!」「○○ホームラン!」と命名している。
- From the 2007 season onwards, he took up Shinjo's gimmick of naming his RBI hits and home runs "so-and-so hit" and "so-and-so home run".
Performances/Jokes
- 2004年9月20日、試合前練習に他の外野手4人（SHINJO、島田一輝、石本努、坪井智哉）とともに『秘密戦隊ゴレンジャー』のマスクをつけて参加。
- 9/20/2004, before the game, he and 4 other players (Shinjo, Shimada, Ishimoto, and Tsuboi) went out in Mighty Morphin Power Ranger masks.
- 2006年7月2日、試合後のヒーローインタビューで尾崎豊の『きっと忘れない』を熱唱（前年のファン感謝イベントでの公約による）。
- 7/2/2006, he sang Yutaka Ozaki's "Kitto Wasurenai" song during a hero interview.
- 2006年7月21日、オールスターゲーム第1戦の試合前イベントに漫画『ドラゴンボール』の登場人物・ピッコロの姿で登場。しかし版権の問題からか、実況は一切コメントをしなかった。第2戦（7月23日）の試合前イベントにはカツラを装着し、差し歯を抜いて登場。
- 7/21/2006 - during the All-Star game, he dressed up as Piccolo from Dragonball Z.
- 2006年8月13日、試合前のスターティングメンバー紹介時に1人だけ「ラリージャパン」の幟をつけた自転車で入場（他の先発メンバーは全員ラリーカーに乗って入場。ラリージャパンの宣伝のため）。
- 8/13/2006 - during the starting lineups, he rode a "Rally Japan" little bicycle out onto the field, despite that all of the other players had ridden cars out.
- 2006年10月26日、日本シリーズ優勝決定後のビールかけの場にスピードスケート選手の衣装で登場。
- During the beer-spraying party following the 2006 Japan Series, he dressed up as a speed skater.
- 2007年6月2日、試合前練習に特注の竹馬とズボンを履いて登場。当日先発登板したダルビッシュ有の身長をはるかに超える3mの「ひちょ・マックス」姿で守備練習を行った。
- 6/2/2007, he came out onto the field before the game wearing stilts and called himself "Hicho MAX!"
- 2007年7月20日に行われたオールスターゲーム第1戦では帽子から「伸びた頭」を披露。しかし遠目ではよく分からなかったため、不評であった。
- 7/20/2007 - during the All-Star 2007 games, he dressed up as a conehead.
- 翌日（7月21日）の第2戦ではタイのムエタイ風の姿（上半身裸に緑のトランクス）で登場し、全パのヒルマン監督と打ち合った。
- The next day he came out dressing like a Muay Thai boxer in green trunks.
- 同年シーズンオフの三井ゴールデングラブ賞表彰式会場に、マイケル・ジャクソン『スリラー』の様な上下赤のレザーファッションとメイクで登場
- During the Golden Glove ceremonies, he dressed up as Michael Jackson.
- 同年（12月1日）札幌ドームで開催された日ハムのファンフェスティバルにて、選手のPK対決で同じ地元のJリーグチーム・コンサドーレ札幌のユニフォームを着てゴールを決めた(その時のキーパー役は鶴岡慎也)。
- During the fan festival, he came out dressed up as a soccer player for Consadole Sapporo, and kicked a goal (the goalkeeper was Fighters catcher Shinya Tsuruoka).
Yikes, my brain hurts from going through all that. I need to add pictures to most of those later "episodes", although I'm sure by now everyone's seen the one of him dressed as Piccolo during the ASG...
Anyway, happy Hichori day! And remember.. Hichori Day means only one day until Spring Training!
It's Hichori Morimoto's 27th birthday today!
As you know, Hichori is one of my favorite players in the entire world. He's a crazy good baseball player and a crazy funny person in general. Like his predecessor in the Fighters centerfield spot Tsuyoshi Shinjo, Hichori has a goal of making people laugh and enjoy baseball, whether it's fans, teammates, or whoever.
Sadly, unlike last year when lots of Hichori-isms were showing up in the press, this year's highschool slugger boy Nakata Sho is completely dominating the Fighters media (and you have no idea how annoying it's getting), so I'm not entirely sure exactly what Hichori is up to, although he was apparently spotted in Hawaii taking batting practice a few weeks ago, hanging out with Shinjo. Cool.
So, instead of rounding up a "What's up with Hichori" for Hichori day this year, I'm going to translate his Wikipedia page into English! Yay!
(I'm leaving the Japanese in this post for now because I'm sure I'll want to tweak my translation in the future and it's easier to do it this way than to keep looking back and forth)
森本 稀哲（もりもと ひちょり、1981年1月31日 - ）は、東京都荒川区出身のプロ野球選手。ポジションは外野手で、主に中堅手。北海道日本ハムファイターズ所属。真面目でとにかく明るい性格とスキンヘッドが特徴。イメージカラーは緑。
Hichori Morimoto (1/31/1981 -) is a pro baseball player from the Arakawa area of Tokyo. He is an outfielder for the Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters, primarily playing center field. He has a bright and interesting personality and is known for having a shaven head. His associated color is green.
在日コリアン（韓国籍）の父と、日本人の母を持つ。生家は東京都荒川区西日暮里で焼肉店「絵理花」を営んでいる。
小学生の時、髪の毛はじめ体毛すべてが突如抜け落ち生えてこなくなる原因不明の難病にかかった。現在はこの病気を克服しているが、当時の苦労を忘れないように、そして同じ病気で苦しむ人に勇気を与えるためにと毎日自身で剃刀を当ててスキンヘッドにし続けている。
His father is a resident (zainichi) Korean and his mother is Japanese. They run a yakiniku restaurant called "Erika" in the Nippori neighborhood of Tokyo where Hichori grew up.
When he was in elementary school, suddenly all of his hair fell out due to an unknown disease. He has gotten better from the disease now, but in order to remember those times and also in honor of other people who have illnesses that cause hair to fall out, he shaves his head every day.
帝京高校では1998年に主将、遊撃手として夏の甲子園に出場。3回戦・浜田高校戦で8回に和田毅（現福岡ソフトバンクホークス）からバックスクリーンへの同点本塁打を放つも敗退。高校通算34本塁打。同年秋のドラフト4位で日本ハムに入団し、入団当初は内野手であったが外野手に転向した。
In 1998, Hichori was captain and shortstop for Teikyo High School's baseball team, which played in the Summer Koshien tournament. In the third round of the tournament, playing against Shimane Prefecture's Hamada High School, their team was down 2-0 in the 8th inning, and Hichori hit a 2-run homer off of Tsuyoshi Wada to tie the game (though Hamada went on to win the game anyway). Hichori hit 34 home runs total during his high school career, and was drafted by the Fighters in the fourth round of the 1998 draft, and they converted him to an outfielder.
2年目の2000年、1軍初出場。その後打撃で伸び悩むが、2005年、課題だった打撃が向上し、初の100試合以上に出場。翌年の飛躍につなげる。
He made his debut at the top team level in 2000, but it wasn't until 2005 that he really improved enough to stick around and play in over 100 games.
2006年
4月下旬から1番・左翼手に定着し、初の規定打席に到達。パシフィック・リーグ最多得点を記録。チームメイトの新庄剛志・稲葉篤紀とともにゴールデングラブ賞を受賞し、同チームで外野手部門を独占した。オールスターゲームに初選出されている。
2006 -
- At the end of April he established himself as the leadoff hitter and regular left fielder. He led the Pacific League that year in runs scored, and along with his teammates Atsunori Inaba (RF) and Tsuyoshi Shinjo (CF), won an all-Fighters Golden Glove outfield. 2006 also was Hichori's first time being elected to play in the All-Star game.
2007年
前年で引退した新庄剛志に代わり中堅手に定着。不動の1番打者として全イニング出場し、初の打率3割を記録。24試合連続安打はパ・リーグ歴代6位タイ、球団では大下弘と並び最多タイ記録。
2007 -
- Hichori inherited uniform number #1 from the recently-retired Tsuyoshi Shinjo. He batted leadoff and played in every single inning of every single game for the Fighters (ed. note: this is not strictly true -- he DH'ed in one game, the "dare aitsu" game of September 30, but it's true he never missed a game or an at-bat), and batted .300 for the first time. His 24-game hitting streak was tied for the 6th best in Pacific League history and tied for the team best with Hiroshi Oshita.
2年連続で最多得票でゴールデングラブ賞と、初のベストナインを獲得。補殺数は両リーグ1位の15個を記録した。
- He also led the Golden Glove voting for the second year in a row, made the Best Nine team for the first time, and led all of NPB outfielders in assists with 15. (ed. note: No joke. The next highest were 10 from Yokohama's Kinjoh and Rakuten's Teppei.)
同じ歳で元チームメイトの實松一成（現読売ジャイアンツ）とは親友である。また、新庄からは弟分のように可愛がられており、森本を自らの背番号1の後継者に指名した。
He is still close friends with former teammate and fellow 1998 draftee Kazunari Sanematsu (now with the Giants -- and thank god for that). Also, he feels like a younger brother to Shinjo, who gave him the uniform number #1 and named him as his "successor".
Uniform numbers
- 53 (in 1999)
- 46 (2000-2006)
- 1 (2007-)
Titles / Awards / Records
Titles:
- Golden Glove, 2006 & 2007
- Best Nine - 2007, OF
Awards:
- All-star game voting (2 times, 2006 / 2007)
- All-star game "new player award" - 2006
- All-star game MVP - 2007
- Japan Series MVP - 2006
Records:
- Every inning of every game - 2007
- 24-game hitting streak - tied for 6th in PL history, tied for top of Fighters team history
- 2 leadoff home runs in consecutive games (4/25/06, 4/26/06 vs. Seibu), the 11th person to do so
- Stole home during an All-Star game, the 3rd person to ever do so
- 6 hits in a game (9/17/2006 against Chiba), tying a league record
Firsts:
- Debut game: 8/2/2000, against Seibu at the Seibu dome, came in as a pinch-hitter in the 10th inning, struck out against Shinji Mori
- First starting lineup appearance: 8/10/2000, against Kintetsu at the Osaka Dome, batting first, playing left field
- First hit: same game (8/10/2000), in the third inning off Narciso Elvira
- First home run: same game, 9th inning, off Shinji Udaka
- First RBI: same game, it was that home run
- First stolen base: 7/18/2001, against Seibu at the Tokyo Dome -- in the 2nd inning, pitcher Daisuke Matsuzaka, catcher Tsutomu Itoh
Trivia:
-「ひちょり」の命名は父による。「稀哲」の韓国語での発音「ヒチョル」から取られた。
- His father named him "Hee-chol" in Korean, and then they made the kanji for "Hichori" in Japanese.
- 入団当時「ひろより」と振り仮名を振ってあった名鑑もあった。また、「稀哲」を「秘哲」と誤植していた名鑑もあった。
- When he first joined the team they misprinted the kanji for his name, thinking it was "Hiroyori".
- 小学生時代に、当時好きだったクラスメイトの女子から「（ドラゴンボールの）ピッコロみたい」と言われた事がある。
- "He looks like Piccolo (from Dragonball Z)!" said female classmates of his in elementary school.
- 高校時代、登校日にはいつも両親手製の焼肉弁当（肉・タレは店で使うものと同じ）を持参し、他の野球部員と交換していた。仲間に焼肉弁当を堪能してもらおうという計らいによる。
- During high school, his parents always made him a yakiniku bento for lunch, which he would bring to school and trade/share with his other baseball teammates. Everyone liked this arrangement :)
- 2006年10月12日のパ・リーグプレーオフ第2ステージ・対福岡ソフトバンクホークス2回戦の9回裏、内野で送球が逸れた際に二塁からホームインし、サヨナラ勝利でリーグ優勝を決めた。優勝の瞬間については「何が何だか分からなかったが、稲葉さんを見たら『喜びを通り越した怖い顔』をしていたので、優勝したことに気付いた」と語っている。
- On 10/12/2006, during the second game of the Pacific League Second Stage playoffs, in the 9th inning, he ran home from second base to score the deciding (and only) run of the game, which won the league championship for the Fighters. He said of that moment, "With all that happened, I best remember seeing Inaba's face, which was of such complete joy that I realized we were the champions."
- 森本には専用の応援歌があるが、2006年のアジアシリーズ決勝戦（11月12日）の第4打席ではファンから後継者という期待を込め、新庄の応援歌の替え歌が演奏された（歌詞中の「メジャー」を「鎌ケ谷」、「新庄」を「稀哲」としていた）。
- During the final game of the 2006 Asia Series, fans sang a parody of Shinjo's player cheer song to cheer for Hichori, replacing the words "Major" with "Kamagaya" and "Shinjo" with "Hichori".
- 2006年11月18日、長袖を千葉県鎌ケ谷市・ファイターズスタジアムに送ってしまったため。札幌市で行われた優勝パレードに半袖のユニフォーム姿で登場した。
- Hichori's long sleeves were supposedly left in Fighters Town Kamagaya and thus he wore short sleeves for the Fighters victory parade in Sapporo on 11/18/2006.
- 2007年3月18日、北海道新幹線大使に任命。
- On 3/18/2007, he was an ambassador for the Hokkaido Shinkansen project.
- 2007年シーズンから、新庄の後を継ぐかのようにタイムリーヒット及び本塁打に「○○ヒッツ!」「○○ホームラン!」と命名している。
- From the 2007 season onwards, he took up Shinjo's gimmick of naming his RBI hits and home runs "so-and-so hit" and "so-and-so home run".
Performances/Jokes
- 2004年9月20日、試合前練習に他の外野手4人（SHINJO、島田一輝、石本努、坪井智哉）とともに『秘密戦隊ゴレンジャー』のマスクをつけて参加。
- 9/20/2004, before the game, he and 4 other players (Shinjo, Shimada, Ishimoto, and Tsuboi) went out in Mighty Morphin Power Ranger masks.
- 2006年7月2日、試合後のヒーローインタビューで尾崎豊の『きっと忘れない』を熱唱（前年のファン感謝イベントでの公約による）。
- 7/2/2006, he sang Yutaka Ozaki's "Kitto Wasurenai" song during a hero interview.
- 2006年7月21日、オールスターゲーム第1戦の試合前イベントに漫画『ドラゴンボール』の登場人物・ピッコロの姿で登場。しかし版権の問題からか、実況は一切コメントをしなかった。第2戦（7月23日）の試合前イベントにはカツラを装着し、差し歯を抜いて登場。
- 7/21/2006 - during the All-Star game, he dressed up as Piccolo from Dragonball Z.
- 2006年8月13日、試合前のスターティングメンバー紹介時に1人だけ「ラリージャパン」の幟をつけた自転車で入場（他の先発メンバーは全員ラリーカーに乗って入場。ラリージャパンの宣伝のため）。
- 8/13/2006 - during the starting lineups, he rode a "Rally Japan" little bicycle out onto the field, despite that all of the other players had ridden cars out.
- 2006年10月26日、日本シリーズ優勝決定後のビールかけの場にスピードスケート選手の衣装で登場。
- During the beer-spraying party following the 2006 Japan Series, he dressed up as a speed skater.
- 2007年6月2日、試合前練習に特注の竹馬とズボンを履いて登場。当日先発登板したダルビッシュ有の身長をはるかに超える3mの「ひちょ・マックス」姿で守備練習を行った。
- 6/2/2007, he came out onto the field before the game wearing stilts and called himself "Hicho MAX!"
- 2007年7月20日に行われたオールスターゲーム第1戦では帽子から「伸びた頭」を披露。しかし遠目ではよく分からなかったため、不評であった。
- 7/20/2007 - during the All-Star 2007 games, he dressed up as a conehead.
- 翌日（7月21日）の第2戦ではタイのムエタイ風の姿（上半身裸に緑のトランクス）で登場し、全パのヒルマン監督と打ち合った。
- The next day he came out dressing like a Muay Thai boxer in green trunks.
- 同年シーズンオフの三井ゴールデングラブ賞表彰式会場に、マイケル・ジャクソン『スリラー』の様な上下赤のレザーファッションとメイクで登場
- During the Golden Glove ceremonies, he dressed up as Michael Jackson.
- 同年（12月1日）札幌ドームで開催された日ハムのファンフェスティバルにて、選手のPK対決で同じ地元のJリーグチーム・コンサドーレ札幌のユニフォームを着てゴールを決めた(その時のキーパー役は鶴岡慎也)。
- During the fan festival, he came out dressed up as a soccer player for Consadole Sapporo, and kicked a goal (the goalkeeper was Fighters catcher Shinya Tsuruoka).
Yikes, my brain hurts from going through all that. I need to add pictures to most of those later "episodes", although I'm sure by now everyone's seen the one of him dressed as Piccolo during the ASG...
Anyway, happy Hichori day! And remember.. Hichori Day means only one day until Spring Training!
Thursday, January 17, 2008
The So Taguchi Philadelphia Phillies of New Jersey
Shukan Baseball magazine had a big theme of "Japanese players in the MLB" this week, including back-to-back Matsui interviews (with Hideki and Kazuo). One of the other features in the magazine was a "Map of MLB Teams with Japanese Players", which is, in other words, "a map of the cities in America that will actually get mentioned regularly on the news here in Japan".
I have frequently told people here that I became really good at Japanese geography a couple of years ago during Koshien, the national baseball tournament. Having teams from every prefecture was a great excuse to actually learn where all of them were. However, I don't think it's quite as easy for Japanese people to learn American geography quite the same way. I mean, for one, not all 50 states in America have major league teams. But also, apparently Philadelphia has moved to New Jersey this year. And Kansas City moved to Kansas. And Pittsburgh moved to Erie. And so on:
All I Needed to Know about America I learned from Ichiro
At least they know where Cleveland is.
Thanks to Pau for pointing this out to me (He wrote me, "Dude, where are your Phillies?"). I don't have a scanner, though, so the best I could do was taking a photo of the magazine with my D200.
I have frequently told people here that I became really good at Japanese geography a couple of years ago during Koshien, the national baseball tournament. Having teams from every prefecture was a great excuse to actually learn where all of them were. However, I don't think it's quite as easy for Japanese people to learn American geography quite the same way. I mean, for one, not all 50 states in America have major league teams. But also, apparently Philadelphia has moved to New Jersey this year. And Kansas City moved to Kansas. And Pittsburgh moved to Erie. And so on:
All I Needed to Know about America I learned from Ichiro
At least they know where Cleveland is.
Thanks to Pau for pointing this out to me (He wrote me, "Dude, where are your Phillies?"). I don't have a scanner, though, so the best I could do was taking a photo of the magazine with my D200.
Wednesday, December 12, 2007
All That Glitters
So, on Monday there was a big ceremony for presenting various NPB awards from this season; best nine, golden gloves, etc. As you can imagine, all of the players showed up dressed in nice business suits. Well, almost all, that is.
Hichori Morimoto decided to pay homage to another person who used to wear a shiny glove, by dressing up as Michael Jackson circa Thriller for the ceremony.
He's so awesome. End of line.
In more things that "glitter", so to speak, a few weeks ago on November 28th, four Fighters players did a Fashion Show event at Marui Imai department store in Sapporo, where they proceeded to be incredibly embarrassed in front of a crowd of around 400 people, mostly middle-aged women.
Your Fashionable Fighters: Kensuke Tanaka, Naoto Inada, Shinya Tsuruoka, Makoto Kaneko.
Kaneko wore a $4000 coat and sunglasses and joked that fashion sense is sorely undervalued on the Fighters. No wonder they miss Shinjo so much.
(Speaking of Kaneko, he's still doing Weekly Mack radio broadcasts and they are still entertaining, if you have time to listen to the archives. I'm still torn over who my favorite Fighter really is these days. I tend to say Hichori when asked, but I think Kaneko is way up there as well.)
Man, I wonder, if only I lived in Sapporo, would I get to go to all of the cool player events? Inaba's going to be at the Asahikawa Aeon mall next week :( Actually, it does seem like there are a few minor leaguer events in Kamagaya -- but I still haven't made it out there to Fighters Town at all. I suck.
Hichori Morimoto decided to pay homage to another person who used to wear a shiny glove, by dressing up as Michael Jackson circa Thriller for the ceremony.
He's so awesome. End of line.
In more things that "glitter", so to speak, a few weeks ago on November 28th, four Fighters players did a Fashion Show event at Marui Imai department store in Sapporo, where they proceeded to be incredibly embarrassed in front of a crowd of around 400 people, mostly middle-aged women.
Your Fashionable Fighters: Kensuke Tanaka, Naoto Inada, Shinya Tsuruoka, Makoto Kaneko.
Kaneko wore a $4000 coat and sunglasses and joked that fashion sense is sorely undervalued on the Fighters. No wonder they miss Shinjo so much.
(Speaking of Kaneko, he's still doing Weekly Mack radio broadcasts and they are still entertaining, if you have time to listen to the archives. I'm still torn over who my favorite Fighter really is these days. I tend to say Hichori when asked, but I think Kaneko is way up there as well.)
Man, I wonder, if only I lived in Sapporo, would I get to go to all of the cool player events? Inaba's going to be at the Asahikawa Aeon mall next week :( Actually, it does seem like there are a few minor leaguer events in Kamagaya -- but I still haven't made it out there to Fighters Town at all. I suck.
Wednesday, October 31, 2007
Japan Series Preview, Part 2: Matching it all up
Sigh. I swear I started writing this post on Friday night before the Series started, but I just got too sidetracked with everything else. At this point I could either post it, or delete all of it, and I'd rather just throw it out there even if it's coming with the series at 2-1 Dragons right now. Besides, I really don't feel like writing about Game 3, being as 1) I didn't see any of it since I was at work and 2) the Fighters got whomped 9-1 with a "patented big first inning" by the Dragons. I really didn't just make that up for humor value, see? Exploding ham.
Also, dear Kansas City fans: just because you're getting our manager next year doesn't make the Fighters "your" team. Although if you wanted to send us Mark Teahen, I certainly wouldn't object.
(I need to stop reading sites from the other side of the Pacific this time of year. The offseason just makes me want to cry.)
Outfield
Fighters: Hichori Morimoto, Atsunori Inaba, Takahito Kudoh and Tomochika Tsuboi
Dragons: Byung-Gyu Lee, Masahiko Morino, Hidenori Kuramoto, Kazuki Inoue
Defense: Fighters.
Hichori gets a lot of flak for having to take over Shinjo's role on the Fighters, but he really is a genuinely good center fielder, with great speed and a decent arm and great instincts. Inaba is also a lot better than most people give him credit for; I don't consider him a liability in the field at all. (I think since he's a 35-year-old left-handed outfielder, people assume he's become just like Yokohama's Saeki or Chunichi's Inoue. They're wrong.) Kudoh and Tsuboi are about the same from all the times I've seen them play, which is to say, they're definitely at least competent.
On the other hand, Lee is no Fukudome, and Morino gets moved around so much that it's hard to really call him any particular position; he's decent in the outfield but no superstar at defense (though all things considered, he's really flexible; how many LF/3B/2B/SS types do YOU know?). And Kazuki is slow as rocks. Hidenori's not bad, but not particularly amazing either.
Offense: Neither.
I know that sounds insane, but in all honesty, there's no clear winner to me. Inaba more than cancels out Morino, see, and nobody else is particularly great.
Cuteness factor: Fighters.
Tsuboi and Kudoh rock the high socks and both have cute smiles. Tsuboi's even a former member of the "Hanshin pretty-boy outfield" with Shinjo. Inaba's really handsome when he smiles, and even if Hichori looks like an alien, his personality gives him inherent cuteness.
I love Morino (Dragonbutt!!), even if several Dragons fans and players and reporters think he looks like the Chunichi mascot Doala. (I also love Doala.) Hidenori's really good-looking -- when he lets his hair grow long, at least. But that's about it. Kazuki sucks.
Middle Infield
Fighters: Makoto Kaneko, Kensuke Tanaka
Dragons: Hirokazu Ibata, Masahiro Araki
Defense: Dragons.
Kensuke and Kaneko are fantastic, don't get me wrong. They're a great middle infield. But they can't compete with the Two-Headed Double Play monster that is Arakibata (or sometimes Ibataraki). I would actually say that it's possible Kensuke is as good as Araki, but Ibata is just the best shortstop in Japan, hands down. He's amazing and intelligent and agile and... just watch him play, you'll see what I mean. He's so good at playing each batter that he makes it look easy, because he's always already where he needs to be to make each play. Two-thirds of the field is covered by artificial turf and the other third is covered by Ibata. (Yeah, I stole the Garry Maddox quote. It's so accurate here.)
Offense: Dragons.
This isn't even a difficult one to talk about. Remember, Kaneko bats 9th and Kensuke's best known for being the King of Bunts.
Cuteness factor: Fighters.
Ibata's kinda cute, but Araki is REALLY astoundingly freakish-looking. Seriously, it's a good thing he's a baseball player because otherwise he could have a nice career frightening children for Halloween. The Fighters, on the other hand, have the adorable Kaneko, who has a fantastic smile and nice eyes and is just plain good-looking. Kensuke is pretty cute too, like an adorable little teddy bear.
Corners
Fighters: Eiichi Koyano, Naoto Inada
Dragons: Tyrone Woods, Norihiro Nakamura
Defense: Fighters.
Nori's not a horrible third baseman but he's really not that great either. I've seen him boot way too many plays and miss too many close grounders to really trust him. Tyrone Woods is basically a homerun-pounding DH stuck in a Central League team. I make fun of Tyrone's defense a lot more than I should, but "T is for Tree" isn't entirely inaccurate. Whereas Koyano and Inada are both pretty reasonable at defense. Naoto is a little worse, which is why he ends up at first more often and Koyano at third, but people will be talking about Naoto vs. The Cameraman for quite a while, I'm sure.
Offense: Dragons.
Duh.
Cuteness factor: Fighters.
Tyrone Woods is actually a really good-looking guy, which I didn't realize until I saw him close up in Yokohama a few weeks ago. He has a really nice smile and surprisingly friendly demeanor. But, Norihiro? Ugh, he's always looked kind of like a troll to me. Whereas, I'm not going to say that either Inada or Koyano completely flattens me with good looks, but they're both cute in their own way. Inada always smiles, and is apparently becoming part of the Hichori "mood maker" faction, and his line about "running like a wild boar thinking the ball was my food" was pretty priceless.
DH
Fighters: Fernando Seguignol
Dragons: Kazuyoshi Tatsunami
Offense: Fighters.
Tatsunami is one of the best hitters ever in Japan, but he's also getting old and has mostly been limited to pinch-hitting this year, and I'm really not worried about his bat all that much. Seguignol, on the other hand, can hit the ball a fairly long distance. And so far in the postseason he's been doing exactly that, quite often.
Cuteness factor: Neither.
In my honest opinion, both guys are what I'd call "classically handsome", and thus disqualify from the cuteness factor.
Catcher
Fighters: Shinji Takahashi, Shinya Tsuruoka
Dragons: Motonobu Tanishige, some scrubs
Defense: Dragons.
Tanishige is freaking awesome. I have no idea how he manages to go out there every single day and be as awesome as he is, given that he's like 37 and literally plays in EVERY Dragons game and has done so for like 3 years. I think he's secretly a robot. The Fighters' catchers aren't bad, certainly, but they're no Tanishige.
Offense: Fighters.
Tsuruoka sucked this year, but Shinji made up for it. Tanishige, on the other hand, bats like an old man. I think his OBP is aided partially by the fact that he's usually batting before the pitcher and thus gets a lot of intentional walks.
Cuteness factor: Fighters.
Tanishige is another one for the "classically handsome" club. I think he's incredibly good-looking, but not "cute" per se. Shinji, on the other hand, is freaking adorable. Tsuruoka is not so adorable but he also plays not so often, so it's okay.
Rotation
Fighters: Yu Darvish, Masaru Takeda, Ryan Glynn, Brian Sweeney
Dragons: Kenshin Kawakami, Kenichi Nakata, Kenta Asakura, Daisuke Yamai
Pitching: Dragons.
I won't say the Fighters starters are bad, because they're not. They are, infact, rather good, and in most cases their win totals are skewed by their team's inability to score runs, so a lot of bullpen guys often pick up the wins. And yes, we have the Sawamura-award-winning Darvish on our side, as well as the best pitcher in the Central League, Ryan Glynn. But, aside from Darvish, all of them have weaknesses. Masaru gives up over one home run per game. Sweeney walks nearly 3 guys per game.
The one big thing that all of the Chunichi starters can really do is stay in there for a good long time and be effective, or at least long enough for their team to score them some runs. The only question is whether or not Ochiai will leave them in for too long, I think. Firearm's always complaining about Nakata blowing games in the 8th inning, but my modern-baseball-brainwashing says that it should be the manager's fault, not his. One thing to note about Asakura and Nakata, also, is that they barely ever lose games at the Nagoya Dome (Asakura was 6-1, 2.11 there in 10 games this year and Nakata was 8-1, 3.20 there in 13 games).
The Chunichi guys do tend to walk slightly more batters per game, although I think that number is being skewed slightly by being in the Central League, which does a lot more intentional walks. In Nakata's case, he's just crazy (and I swear he gets more full counts than any other pitcher in the world). Nakata also led the Central league in wild pitches this year, for that matter.
I should have posted this somewhere else, but what the hell, here are the Saber-numbers on these guys:
You know, there's got to be a league equalizer somewhere, but either way, despite the awesome control and reputation of the Fighters pitchers, I still think the Chunichi rotation is better.
Cuteness factor: Fighters (but it's close).
Darvish is really adorable, Glynn and Sweeney aren't bad, and while I think Hisashi is the cuter of the Takeda tandem, Masaru's kind of cute too.
Nakata's really adorable and Kenshin's sort of a stoic samurai type, but the jury's out on the rest of these guys.
Bullpen
Dragons: Hitoki Iwase, Shinya Okamoto, Yuuichi Hisamoto
Fighters: Micheal Nakamura, Hisashi Takeda, Mitsuo Yoshikawa
Pitching: Dragons.
I hate to say it, but right now I'd rather have Iwase in the 9th than Micheal. Hopefully I'll end up being proven wrong about that. As for the rest of the bullpen, they're both good, but neither one is as good as it was last year.
Cuteness factor: Neither.
I'm just rushing to finish this post and lamenting the fact that Shintaro Ejiri got injured, because he was really adorable, I liked the Ejiri-Hisashi-Micheal tandem we were carrying in the late games. Alas.
Others
I was going to try to justify a cute-off between Keizo Kawashima and Ryota Arai, but it seems kind of pointless now.
Either way, the Fighters completely win on cuteness if nothing else! Whether that can get them to another Japan Series victory is another story, though.
Also, dear Kansas City fans: just because you're getting our manager next year doesn't make the Fighters "your" team. Although if you wanted to send us Mark Teahen, I certainly wouldn't object.
(I need to stop reading sites from the other side of the Pacific this time of year. The offseason just makes me want to cry.)
Outfield
Fighters: Hichori Morimoto, Atsunori Inaba, Takahito Kudoh and Tomochika Tsuboi
Dragons: Byung-Gyu Lee, Masahiko Morino, Hidenori Kuramoto, Kazuki Inoue
Defense: Fighters.
Hichori gets a lot of flak for having to take over Shinjo's role on the Fighters, but he really is a genuinely good center fielder, with great speed and a decent arm and great instincts. Inaba is also a lot better than most people give him credit for; I don't consider him a liability in the field at all. (I think since he's a 35-year-old left-handed outfielder, people assume he's become just like Yokohama's Saeki or Chunichi's Inoue. They're wrong.) Kudoh and Tsuboi are about the same from all the times I've seen them play, which is to say, they're definitely at least competent.
On the other hand, Lee is no Fukudome, and Morino gets moved around so much that it's hard to really call him any particular position; he's decent in the outfield but no superstar at defense (though all things considered, he's really flexible; how many LF/3B/2B/SS types do YOU know?). And Kazuki is slow as rocks. Hidenori's not bad, but not particularly amazing either.
Offense: Neither.
I know that sounds insane, but in all honesty, there's no clear winner to me. Inaba more than cancels out Morino, see, and nobody else is particularly great.
Cuteness factor: Fighters.
Tsuboi and Kudoh rock the high socks and both have cute smiles. Tsuboi's even a former member of the "Hanshin pretty-boy outfield" with Shinjo. Inaba's really handsome when he smiles, and even if Hichori looks like an alien, his personality gives him inherent cuteness.
I love Morino (Dragonbutt!!), even if several Dragons fans and players and reporters think he looks like the Chunichi mascot Doala. (I also love Doala.) Hidenori's really good-looking -- when he lets his hair grow long, at least. But that's about it. Kazuki sucks.
Middle Infield
Fighters: Makoto Kaneko, Kensuke Tanaka
Dragons: Hirokazu Ibata, Masahiro Araki
Defense: Dragons.
Kensuke and Kaneko are fantastic, don't get me wrong. They're a great middle infield. But they can't compete with the Two-Headed Double Play monster that is Arakibata (or sometimes Ibataraki). I would actually say that it's possible Kensuke is as good as Araki, but Ibata is just the best shortstop in Japan, hands down. He's amazing and intelligent and agile and... just watch him play, you'll see what I mean. He's so good at playing each batter that he makes it look easy, because he's always already where he needs to be to make each play. Two-thirds of the field is covered by artificial turf and the other third is covered by Ibata. (Yeah, I stole the Garry Maddox quote. It's so accurate here.)
Offense: Dragons.
This isn't even a difficult one to talk about. Remember, Kaneko bats 9th and Kensuke's best known for being the King of Bunts.
Cuteness factor: Fighters.
Ibata's kinda cute, but Araki is REALLY astoundingly freakish-looking. Seriously, it's a good thing he's a baseball player because otherwise he could have a nice career frightening children for Halloween. The Fighters, on the other hand, have the adorable Kaneko, who has a fantastic smile and nice eyes and is just plain good-looking. Kensuke is pretty cute too, like an adorable little teddy bear.
Corners
Fighters: Eiichi Koyano, Naoto Inada
Dragons: Tyrone Woods, Norihiro Nakamura
Defense: Fighters.
Nori's not a horrible third baseman but he's really not that great either. I've seen him boot way too many plays and miss too many close grounders to really trust him. Tyrone Woods is basically a homerun-pounding DH stuck in a Central League team. I make fun of Tyrone's defense a lot more than I should, but "T is for Tree" isn't entirely inaccurate. Whereas Koyano and Inada are both pretty reasonable at defense. Naoto is a little worse, which is why he ends up at first more often and Koyano at third, but people will be talking about Naoto vs. The Cameraman for quite a while, I'm sure.
Offense: Dragons.
Duh.
Cuteness factor: Fighters.
Tyrone Woods is actually a really good-looking guy, which I didn't realize until I saw him close up in Yokohama a few weeks ago. He has a really nice smile and surprisingly friendly demeanor. But, Norihiro? Ugh, he's always looked kind of like a troll to me. Whereas, I'm not going to say that either Inada or Koyano completely flattens me with good looks, but they're both cute in their own way. Inada always smiles, and is apparently becoming part of the Hichori "mood maker" faction, and his line about "running like a wild boar thinking the ball was my food" was pretty priceless.
DH
Fighters: Fernando Seguignol
Dragons: Kazuyoshi Tatsunami
Offense: Fighters.
Tatsunami is one of the best hitters ever in Japan, but he's also getting old and has mostly been limited to pinch-hitting this year, and I'm really not worried about his bat all that much. Seguignol, on the other hand, can hit the ball a fairly long distance. And so far in the postseason he's been doing exactly that, quite often.
Cuteness factor: Neither.
In my honest opinion, both guys are what I'd call "classically handsome", and thus disqualify from the cuteness factor.
Catcher
Fighters: Shinji Takahashi, Shinya Tsuruoka
Dragons: Motonobu Tanishige, some scrubs
Defense: Dragons.
Tanishige is freaking awesome. I have no idea how he manages to go out there every single day and be as awesome as he is, given that he's like 37 and literally plays in EVERY Dragons game and has done so for like 3 years. I think he's secretly a robot. The Fighters' catchers aren't bad, certainly, but they're no Tanishige.
Offense: Fighters.
Tsuruoka sucked this year, but Shinji made up for it. Tanishige, on the other hand, bats like an old man. I think his OBP is aided partially by the fact that he's usually batting before the pitcher and thus gets a lot of intentional walks.
Cuteness factor: Fighters.
Tanishige is another one for the "classically handsome" club. I think he's incredibly good-looking, but not "cute" per se. Shinji, on the other hand, is freaking adorable. Tsuruoka is not so adorable but he also plays not so often, so it's okay.
Rotation
Fighters: Yu Darvish, Masaru Takeda, Ryan Glynn, Brian Sweeney
Dragons: Kenshin Kawakami, Kenichi Nakata, Kenta Asakura, Daisuke Yamai
Pitching: Dragons.
I won't say the Fighters starters are bad, because they're not. They are, infact, rather good, and in most cases their win totals are skewed by their team's inability to score runs, so a lot of bullpen guys often pick up the wins. And yes, we have the Sawamura-award-winning Darvish on our side, as well as the best pitcher in the Central League, Ryan Glynn. But, aside from Darvish, all of them have weaknesses. Masaru gives up over one home run per game. Sweeney walks nearly 3 guys per game.
The one big thing that all of the Chunichi starters can really do is stay in there for a good long time and be effective, or at least long enough for their team to score them some runs. The only question is whether or not Ochiai will leave them in for too long, I think. Firearm's always complaining about Nakata blowing games in the 8th inning, but my modern-baseball-brainwashing says that it should be the manager's fault, not his. One thing to note about Asakura and Nakata, also, is that they barely ever lose games at the Nagoya Dome (Asakura was 6-1, 2.11 there in 10 games this year and Nakata was 8-1, 3.20 there in 13 games).
The Chunichi guys do tend to walk slightly more batters per game, although I think that number is being skewed slightly by being in the Central League, which does a lot more intentional walks. In Nakata's case, he's just crazy (and I swear he gets more full counts than any other pitcher in the world). Nakata also led the Central league in wild pitches this year, for that matter.
I should have posted this somewhere else, but what the hell, here are the Saber-numbers on these guys:
WHIP BB/9 K/BB K/9 HR/9 FIP ERA
Yu Darvish 0.83 2.13 4.29 9.12 0.39 2.64 1.82
Ryan Glynn 1.05 1.92 3.36 6.45 0.93 3.86 2.21
Masaru Takeda 0.87 1.03 5.94 6.10 1.09 3.88 2.54
Brian Sweeney 1.33 2.97 1.56 4.62 0.91 4.53 3.70
Kenta Asakura 1.30 2.63 2.10 5.52 0.47 3.60 3.36
Kenichi Nakata 1.41 4.29 2.19 9.37 0.74 3.72 3.59
Kenshin Kawakami 1.18 1.24 6.30 7.81 0.97 3.39 3.55
Takashi Ogasawara 1.19 2.47 2.94 7.27 0.75 3.59 2.99
Daisuke Yamai 1.29 3.47 1.75 6.07 0.65 3.98 3.36
You know, there's got to be a league equalizer somewhere, but either way, despite the awesome control and reputation of the Fighters pitchers, I still think the Chunichi rotation is better.
Cuteness factor: Fighters (but it's close).
Darvish is really adorable, Glynn and Sweeney aren't bad, and while I think Hisashi is the cuter of the Takeda tandem, Masaru's kind of cute too.
Nakata's really adorable and Kenshin's sort of a stoic samurai type, but the jury's out on the rest of these guys.
Bullpen
Dragons: Hitoki Iwase, Shinya Okamoto, Yuuichi Hisamoto
Fighters: Micheal Nakamura, Hisashi Takeda, Mitsuo Yoshikawa
Pitching: Dragons.
I hate to say it, but right now I'd rather have Iwase in the 9th than Micheal. Hopefully I'll end up being proven wrong about that. As for the rest of the bullpen, they're both good, but neither one is as good as it was last year.
Cuteness factor: Neither.
I'm just rushing to finish this post and lamenting the fact that Shintaro Ejiri got injured, because he was really adorable, I liked the Ejiri-Hisashi-Micheal tandem we were carrying in the late games. Alas.
Others
I was going to try to justify a cute-off between Keizo Kawashima and Ryota Arai, but it seems kind of pointless now.
Either way, the Fighters completely win on cuteness if nothing else! Whether that can get them to another Japan Series victory is another story, though.
Friday, September 28, 2007
Friday Foto: Kannai South McDonald's
Welcome to the game of Getting Home Unscathed From A Baseball Game!
You are standing inside Yokohama stadium after watching a most excellent game where the Bay Stars won and one of your favorite players, Atsushi Kizuka, was a game hero. Now you have a more important mission: get out of Yokohama without getting crushed by the crowd!
There are exits from the stadium all over the place.
> leave stadium
Ok. You are surrounded by approximately 15,000 crazy Yokohama baseball fans.
> go north
You can't; there are too many people in the intersection to get anywhere near it or the subway station.
> go west
Ok. You see a McDonald's and some various yakiniku restaurants and a convenience store.
> enter Mcdonald's
You enter the Kannai south McDonald's and immediately notice that there's a whole bunch of current MLB memorabilia displayed under the counter, including a signed Mariners jersey, some Yankees caps, and various other things. It almost reminds you of the McDonald's right by Yankee Stadium up in the Bronx.
A guy behind the counter says to you in Japanese, "Welcome to McDonald's. Can I take your order?"
> order food
You order a Big Mac combo. The guy says, "Please wait a second!"
> look
To your left you can see the upstairs dining area. There are pictures on the wall of several old MLB baseball scenes and players; offhand you can spot Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Ted Williams, Cy Young, and so on. There are some Mickey Mantle magazine cutouts, a few displays of old baseball cards, and pictures of a few old ballparks.
The server gives you your food. "Thank you for your order!" he says.
> go downstairs
The entire staircase downstairs is also covered in 8x10 photos of old American baseball stars, mostly from the 1920's and 1930's.
You reach the downstairs dining room and can't believe your eyes. There is baseball memorabilia everywhere. Above the trash cans is a mock oldskool scoreboard, with more pictures. In the main room there are several display cases of MLB stuff, with one or two of Yokohama Baystars jerseys. There are baseball cards on one wall, and models of stadiums on another. There is a mural of Red Sox players from 1950ish on another wall, although there are people sitting in front of it so you can't see it. Above the entire room is a mural that appears to be of 1980's MLB players; you can see Mike Schmidt depicted there. They also have displays of several baseball bats up there.
> get out camera
Good call.
> surreptitiously take pictures of everything around me
I don't understand "surreptitously".
Your flash goes off and everyone looks at you like you're some kind of freak photographing a McDonald's dining room.
The downstairs dining room at the Kannai McDonald's
The "Press Box" display case, which included things like 1951 New York Giants jerseys and jackets, some old Expos stuff, Mets jerseys, and so on.
Another MLB display case, with hats, figurines, tickets to big games, etc.
Yokohama memorabilia; jerseys from Kazuhiro Sasaki and Tatsuya Shindoh.
Advertisements for McGriddles and McFlurries... and more baseball memorabilia.
The scoreboard above the trash cans, and some more old MLB photos.
> eat food
Ok. It tastes suspiciously like a Big Mac and fries and a coke.
> separate garbage
You dump out your ice into one bin, put your straw and drink cap in one trash can, put your paper into another trash can, and leave your tray on the other counter.
> leave
Amidst funny stares from the people still wondering what a crazy American is doing there in a Murata #25 t-shirt taking pictures of the McDonald's, you manage to escape the restaurant.
> go east
Ok. The intersection is now free of baseball fans, aside from a few stragglers who appear to be the Saeki Fan Club and are wearing black-and-gold t-shirts. There are exits to the east, west, north, and south.
> go north
Ok. You get to Kannai station. It is relatively uncrowded. You have no problems getting onto a train back up to Saitama.
Congrats, you win the game! Your score was 19 out of 20 possible points.
You are standing inside Yokohama stadium after watching a most excellent game where the Bay Stars won and one of your favorite players, Atsushi Kizuka, was a game hero. Now you have a more important mission: get out of Yokohama without getting crushed by the crowd!
There are exits from the stadium all over the place.
> leave stadium
Ok. You are surrounded by approximately 15,000 crazy Yokohama baseball fans.
> go north
You can't; there are too many people in the intersection to get anywhere near it or the subway station.
> go west
Ok. You see a McDonald's and some various yakiniku restaurants and a convenience store.
> enter Mcdonald's
You enter the Kannai south McDonald's and immediately notice that there's a whole bunch of current MLB memorabilia displayed under the counter, including a signed Mariners jersey, some Yankees caps, and various other things. It almost reminds you of the McDonald's right by Yankee Stadium up in the Bronx.
A guy behind the counter says to you in Japanese, "Welcome to McDonald's. Can I take your order?"
> order food
You order a Big Mac combo. The guy says, "Please wait a second!"
> look
To your left you can see the upstairs dining area. There are pictures on the wall of several old MLB baseball scenes and players; offhand you can spot Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Ted Williams, Cy Young, and so on. There are some Mickey Mantle magazine cutouts, a few displays of old baseball cards, and pictures of a few old ballparks.
The server gives you your food. "Thank you for your order!" he says.
> go downstairs
The entire staircase downstairs is also covered in 8x10 photos of old American baseball stars, mostly from the 1920's and 1930's.
You reach the downstairs dining room and can't believe your eyes. There is baseball memorabilia everywhere. Above the trash cans is a mock oldskool scoreboard, with more pictures. In the main room there are several display cases of MLB stuff, with one or two of Yokohama Baystars jerseys. There are baseball cards on one wall, and models of stadiums on another. There is a mural of Red Sox players from 1950ish on another wall, although there are people sitting in front of it so you can't see it. Above the entire room is a mural that appears to be of 1980's MLB players; you can see Mike Schmidt depicted there. They also have displays of several baseball bats up there.
> get out camera
Good call.
> surreptitiously take pictures of everything around me
I don't understand "surreptitously".
Your flash goes off and everyone looks at you like you're some kind of freak photographing a McDonald's dining room.
The downstairs dining room at the Kannai McDonald's
The "Press Box" display case, which included things like 1951 New York Giants jerseys and jackets, some old Expos stuff, Mets jerseys, and so on.
Another MLB display case, with hats, figurines, tickets to big games, etc.
Yokohama memorabilia; jerseys from Kazuhiro Sasaki and Tatsuya Shindoh.
Advertisements for McGriddles and McFlurries... and more baseball memorabilia.
The scoreboard above the trash cans, and some more old MLB photos.
> eat food
Ok. It tastes suspiciously like a Big Mac and fries and a coke.
> separate garbage
You dump out your ice into one bin, put your straw and drink cap in one trash can, put your paper into another trash can, and leave your tray on the other counter.
> leave
Amidst funny stares from the people still wondering what a crazy American is doing there in a Murata #25 t-shirt taking pictures of the McDonald's, you manage to escape the restaurant.
> go east
Ok. The intersection is now free of baseball fans, aside from a few stragglers who appear to be the Saeki Fan Club and are wearing black-and-gold t-shirts. There are exits to the east, west, north, and south.
> go north
Ok. You get to Kannai station. It is relatively uncrowded. You have no problems getting onto a train back up to Saitama.
Congrats, you win the game! Your score was 19 out of 20 possible points.
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