Baseball and Yakyuu

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Baseball and Yakyuu
Masahiro Suzuki

“Ichiro, Ichiro, Ichiro….” The stadium was filled with cheers and excitements when he showed up in the field. It was a thrilling moment at the Safeco field in Seattle. I went to Seattle to watch the Mariners play seven times. I studied at Willamette University in Salem, Oregon for a one year study abroad program last year. I noticed some differences and similarities between Major League Baseball and Japanese professional baseball. In this article, I will write about the historical relationship between them, what I observed at the games, and the responses of two American friends’ regarding their perspectives about the American and Japanese baseball cultures.
Lately, some great Japanese baseball players have flourished in Major League Baseball each year since Hideo Nomo signed to Los Angeles Dodgers in 1995. For example, Nomo achieved no-hitters twice in 1995 and again in 2001. Another example of a great player is Ichiro Suzuki. He started to play for the Seattle Mariners in 2001. In his first year, he won the most valuable player award, and in 2004 he set the single season hit record with 262 hits. The record was previously held by George Sisler with 257 hits which occurred 84 years ago. He has and continues to receive many awards and broke numerous records that many people did not think he could.
I usually go to watch Japanese professional baseball at least five times a year. Major League Baseball and Japanese professional baseball has a few similarities and some differences. The biggest similarity was the style of the game. Both countries pitching have changed dramatically. Years ago, it was a common that starter pitch a complete an entire game in both baseball leagues. However, now it is the mainstream that teams utilize a starter, setup, and closer. I was surprised when I noticed some of the differences. For instance, it was how fans choose to cheer. In Japan, both teams have a cheering section. All teams have a cheering organization. They sit in the out field seats, and they cheer with big flag, musical instruments and some kinds of noise maker. It surprised me when I watched the Mariners game in Seattle. Most all of the seats were full of Mariners fans. On the other hand, at Japanese games, right field seat are for the home team’s fans and left field seats are for the guest team’s fans. When I watched baseball game at Japanese stadiums, I felt a lot of distance between player and us. However, in the American stadiums I felt connected to the players, like I was a part of their game. I could see the words such as “make a noise” or “Louder” on the screen when the home team had chance, then they shout out. So their baseball is more like entertainment. I think it is because of the differences in their stadium. Japanese baseball stadium have high fence and many nets. I think Japanese stadiums do not have originality.
I interviewed Rick Lund and Daniel Carroll about baseball. I met Rick last summer and he is a sports editor for the Seattle Times. My friend introduced me to him when I mentioned that I love for sports, I am interested in journalism, and I’d like to be a sports journalist in the future. Daniel Carroll is a Willamette University student. He was my roommate when I was at Willamette. He is from Seattle, and he is a big Mariners fan.
First, I asked them about why Safeco Field has so many Japanese fans. Rick said, “Probably a couple of reasons. First, there is a significant Japanese population in Seattle. Because the team is owned by Nintendo, the Mariners have aggressively pursued players from Japan. Mac Suzuki was the first. The signing of Ichiro has brought even more Japanese fans to Safeco Field. Now the Mariners have a Japanese catcher. I think the Mariners' organization is very much interested in having a Japanese flavor. I know they were supposed to open the 2002 season in Tokyo, but it was cancelled because of terrorist threats left over from 2001.” Daniel said, “I think Safeco Field has been a big tourist attraction that brings a lot of Japanese people every year because of the players on the Mariners. Since 2000, we had Kazuhiro Sasaki, then Ichiro, and Shigetoshi Hasegawa. The team has been trying to help visitors from Japan out by posting signs and directions in Japanese, and also having a small sushi restaurant near the bullpens.”
When asked what his image of Japanese baseball is, Rick said, “Only what I have seen in American movies. I saw one starring Tom Sellick. I don't know much about it, but the image I have --from that movie -- is fans bringing a lot of noise-makers to the game. They made noise throughout the game. I guess I have long had this image that Japanese baseball is inferior to American baseball. But I think some of the Japanese players in recent years have dispelled that myth a little bit. I also have this image that the Japan league is a pitching-oriented league.” Daniel said, “It seems to me that a lot of pictures I have seen of Japanese baseball have been with artificial turf, or the infield was entirely dirt, instead of in the United States, where teams take a lot of time taking care of their field, cutting grass to proper lengths or cutting it in such a way that there is a checkerboard design. I think I like the American way of preparing the baseball field, but that's probably because I live here, and have seen it more often.”
Finally, I asked them if they had any opinions about the differences they see between American and Japanese baseball. Rick commented, “I would say U.S. baseball has more power hitters than Japan. It seems like most of the American players that played in Japan in their later years were home-run hitters, so maybe that's what Japanese managers feel their teams needed, more power.” Daniel commented, “I’m often told that Japanese baseball is a little better than Triple-A Minor League Baseball, which is the second-highest level of professional baseball in the United States. As we've seen with Ichiro and Hideki Matsui, Sasaki, and Hideo Nomo, is that if you can excel in Japan, you should be able to do well in the U.S.. Because of this, I'm looking forward to watching Kenji Johjima with the Mariners this season.”
After listening to their comments, it seems that interest in Japanese baseball started to be seen among American baseball fans, and especially for Mariners’ fans, there seems to be a big hope in Johjima’s promotion. He is a first Japanese catcher in Major League Baseball. I have big hopes for him too. But I think he will have some problems, because the position of catcher is the most important position in terms of communicating with other players and coaching staff. As catcher his English skills will be tested. Johjima is a pioneer as a catcher play in Major League Baseball, and I do not know any foreign players who had played catcher in Japanese professional baseball. But I believe he will be successful in Major league baseball similar to the success off other Japanese players just as Nomo or Ichiro have shown. I think Johjima had passed many problems before.
In conclusion, I hope yakyuu which means baseball in Japanese, will be getting livelier in Japan. The Japanese professional baseball league should protect the original cheer style with big flags and some musical instruments, but also follow the Major League Baseball strong aspect like management and fan services. Japanese baseball has encountered some problems in the last few years. They have lost fans due to Japanese players joining the Major League. This problem does not happen in America. However, Major League has had problems that Japanese baseball does not, such as the use of steroids. I hope both countries’ baseball will be better in the future and their relationship, originality, and history will continue forever.