I Think I'm Turning Japanese

In light of the recent Tsunami, I realized just how much influence America has had on the baseball culture of Japan, and the plethora of players that come from that island and turn out to be stars in the major leagues including: Hideki Matsui, Daisuke Matsuzaka, and Ichiro Suzuki. In fact, the all-time home run leader in the entire world was a Japanese player named Sadaharu Oh.

                                       Image: www.truestar.com

Baseball was introduced onto the Japanese islands in 1872 by Horace Wilson, and the establishment of a formal team came six years later. Because the game was considered a pastime in Japan, it was  shameful for the players to take money for something they enjoyed doing, and the games were all free until 1906 (when I guess they decided it was no longer shameful). 

In 1908, professional teams from the United States began touring through Japan,  playing against several university teams that were made up of amateur players. It wasn’t until 1920 that Japan founded the first two professional teams in an attempt to help spread knowledge and wide-spread acceptance of baseball as a sport in Asia. However, due to financial strains, the professional league disintegrated only three years later, and all attempts at reviving its standing were formally dropped when the league disbanded. 

However, this termination did not last long because in 1934, the Greater Japan Tokyo Baseball Club was founded, followed by Osaka Baseball Club  in 1935. In later years these teams would go on to become the Yomiuri Giants and the Hanshin Tigers. The success of the professional baseball revival was legitimized in 1936 when five more teams began and the Japanese Baseball League was official. 

In 1986, a group of American Major League All-Stars began making a tour through Japan at the end of their normal season. During this time they played exhibition games against those players and teams who were involved in Japan’s professional league. They continue to do this tour today and play in what is now known as the Major League Baseball Japan All-Star Series.

Although the Japanese greatly admire American teams like the Cubs, Red Sox, Mariners, Yankees, and Twins, their style of baseball has sometimes been classified as a different than what most people see in the United States. It is often referred to as Samurai baseball, some say that it is different because the Japanese way of life and cultural identity is different. There is a stress on not just the sport or the superstar individuals that may play within the game, but also on the group identity as a whole, and a sense respect for those who are older and have come before them.

                                       Image: www.axisblog.com

Whatever differences may have arisen between the way that the Japanese and the Americans see the sport, baseball is still a game that binds the two cultures. It is a game of skill and determination, and sometimes watching a game is the perfect way to kick back and relax no matter which continent you are on.

Baseball on the Go

The top-grossing app on iTunes last year wasn’t Angry Birds, Tiny Wings, Words With Friends or any of the other cheap games guaranteed to be on any iPhone you find. Instead, it was a $15 app, MLB.com’s At Bat which is designed for those fans who prefer to watch games instead of play them.

At Bat 11, which is available on Apple devices, Android and BlackBerry, includes a handful of new features  for the opening of the 2011 baseball season. The biggest improvement will only work this month, and only for Apple devices: free live video of every out-of-market game. (The feature costs $100 for the remainder of the season.)

At Bat 11 is much better than the previous versions in many ways, depending on what device you use and where you use it. Android users get the biggest upgrade, in that the app finally displays live video. All season they can watch one free game daily. For fans at the ballpark, At Bat is also much better than last year's version because of a new set of features meant specifically for them.

Those who actually go to the games with an iPhone,  iPod Touch or Android phone get a bonusn in the form of the app’s At the Ballpark feature. Apple users receive detailed maps of the site, video highlights and, depending on the ballpark, even discounts on concessions (which we all know can be outrageously expensive).

IPad users of the app miss out on the ballpark-related perks, but they’ll see other improvements in the appearance and quality of information. Take, for instance, the field view, where you can watch an animated, pitch-by-pitch version of every game as it progresses.

Like last year, the screen shows the play from the home-plate umpire’s  view. This year, MLB.com used images from the Sony PlayStation 3 game, MLB 11 The Show, to display a more realistic view of the stadiums. Later this season, those life-like graphics will extend to the batting stances of individual players. The improvements are not limited to look only, though; one of the app's landmark features is the pitch-location feature, which gets a big improvement.

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Each pitch still arcs toward viewers in the same path, likewise, the ball’s path is color-coded to denote the pitch type, but when the pitch reaches the plate, a label appears (e.g. 78 MPH Curve Ball). If you click on that label, the screen shows a side view of the pitch, the pitcher’s release point, where the pitch broke and how many inches it broke.

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Because of the advancements in technology and the convince they provide, we are able to constantly be in contact with our team, and it will keep improving without a doubt. Perhaps one day there will be an app that works in 3D and will allow you to feel as if you are sitting at the ball park while you are actually at work.