An American tradition that has become a Japanese obsession.
The Hanshin Tigers may very well be the most well-known Japanese team due to their notoriously energetic fans, but what are the Colorado Rockies known for? Losing. Until now, that is.
When I flipped open the English version of the Asahi Shinbun- a Japanese newspaper- the Colorado Rockies claimed almost the entire sports page! It has been an interesting week in the world of baseball. As a short review for those of you that don't follow baseball- the Tigers lost on a grand scale at the final home game of the regular season, while the Rockies won when all odds (or maybe just their history) were against them.
What truly fascinated me about the Rockies'front pagesports article in a Japanese newspaper wasn't the fact that it is a part of my culture and my local team. If you look closely, the picture is of Rockies 2nd baseman, and Osaka native,
Kazuo Matsui, who played an integral role in the Rockies' 13th inning tie-breaker win for a playoff spot against the Padres. Kazuo Matsui is the perfect picture of the globalization of sports.
With Japanese players in the Major League, and American players in the Japanese League, baseball is no longer purely an American sport. It was an eye-opening experience for me to see a team that I grew up watching...in a Japanese newspaper...with an Osaka native playing...for my local team. Whew. Confusing? Well, it definitely brought the whole idea of globalization closer to home for me.
After talking about baseball in my Intercultural Communications class, and watching the film Mr. Baseball, where the American is thrown into Japanese baseball, it was interesting to see the flip side- a Japanese succeeding in the Major League. I look forward to my ESPN Sportscast of each Rockies game, since actually watching it on Japanese television is out of the question- it's the Japan League, Yankees, or nothing for the Japanese. Hopefully soon I will see the Rockies on the first page again, but this time as World Series champs.
Congrats to my Rockies!!! And keep up the good work Matsui!!!
note: Some of you may remember my articles about studying in Germany. I am now studying for one semester in Osaka, Japan to fulfill my study abroad requirement in Germany.