Top dogs and underdogs

Below are some photos of a Hanshin Tigers game I went to a while back. It was a great time—and I don’t know anything about the team. I’ve since been to 2 more Tigers games and one set of tickets was free. I was talking in my adult class about baseball which lead to a conversation about top dogs (the Tokyo Giants) and underdogs (the Hanshin Tigers, although they seem to have no chance this season) I asked my students what team they supported. In the end, the I said I liked the Tigers “of course!” because they are the local team, and a woman who is the biggest Tigers fan I’ve met (her car is yellow... because it’s a tigers colour) said she had 3 tickets to a game that she couldn’t go to, would I like them? Yes!

Before coming to Japan, I think the last professional sports event I went to was an NBA game my dad got free tickets to, when I was in high school, and maybe a game during the 1990s BlueJays heyday. I would not call myself a sports fan. However, Japan has changed me. In Japan, I have seen 2 sumo games, 3 Hanshin Tigers games and 1 soccer game in Seoul. Why the change of heart?

1. You can bring your own everything. No fear of extortionist vendor prices, just bring your own. The only rule is at the baseball games, you can’t take glass bottles or cans in, so you have to pour them into big cups (and they have a cupholder for you to use).
2. The cheering. At all 3 of the Tigers games I’ve been to, the Tigers have lost. Did that stop the fans? Oh no. Just as enthusiastic at the bottom of the 8th, loosing 8-1 as they were at the start. In the fan section (cheap seats) there are organized cheer-leaders, and everyone knows the cheers and sings along (or in my case, fakes it). Even at sumo you find yourself getting caught up in the moment (literally), feeding off the atmosphere.

Anyway, here are some photos for your enjoyment.



The fan-section at the end of the 7th inning. Instead of a "stretch," everyone blows up a rather phallic looking balloon and lets go at the same time. It's nice and dramatic, if not environmentally friendly. (Although at my last game they didn't do this due to H1N1 paranoia).

The game! If you can be bothered to watch it. I spent most of my first one just trying to learn the cheers. Tigers fan's only cheer when they are up to bat (and maybe sometimes for the pitcher?) so until the cheers are second nature, you need to follow the leaders to get the rhythm right.