Based on the Daily Sports column / デイリースポーツオンラインの連載コラムから
Hanshin Tigers English News (H-TEN) has put out over 160 podcast episodes in just over seven years. There have been four main co-hosts (WhizOh, Joe, JD, and Sanjay) and a few guests along the way, too. I have had a ton of fun talking Hanshin baseball with other fans, interviewing former players, and knowing that my product is reaching a worldwide audience (the scope of which I have no clue, so it might be just a dozen people for all I know!).
Do you know where I drew my podcasting inspiration from? And when? Here’s the brief story. I became a Tigers fan in May or June 2014, depending on how you define “fan.” Well, I went all-out updating my site during the miraculous playoff run that year. In fact, something that had started as a simple hobby (and distraction from work) had turned into full-on obsession. Exhausted by the end of the Japan Series, I woke up the next morning with a headache and swollen eyes. “I’ve been on my computer WAY too much lately,” I thought to myself, and took a couple of days off work (and life) thinking that would do the trick. It did not. After several visits to the doctor, it was determined that I had Graves Disease, and would require hospitalization. Don’t worry, Graves is not life-threatening, and I have since fully recovered!
By this point, it was January 2015. While in the hospital, I let my fandom go to the next level. I cranked out a lot of preseason articles, in part because I was quite bored while confined to my room. Well, when evening rolled around, I thumbed through my smartphone, and did a search in the Podcasts app for Hanshin Tigers. The result was “Tigers Cast” – a Japanese show with 5-6 guys talking about the team with incredible passion and humour. How cool is that? It sure made evenings in the hospital a little less lonely.
That planted the bug in my ear, and by that summer, I gave podcasting my first go. Not very much quality there, and maybe not much quality for the next 50-ish episodes… but I still enjoyed doing it. In fact, around the 20 show marker, I was contacted by Tigers Cast and they asked me to guest on their show. What a thrill, and yet, what a challenge. I can ramble on endlessly about the Tigers in English, but would I be capable of doing the same in Japanese? It went reasonably well, but most importantly, I forged some connections with the guys on the show. I have actually attended a few Tigers games with them as well, and we maintain a cordial, cooperative relationship with one another. I mention them on my show at times, and they mention me on theirs. (And… I might start appearing on their show more regularly in 2023!)
OK, on to the main course. In mid-October, Tigers Cast held their second annual “Talk Show Live” – which is kind of like a live recording of their podcast in front of an audience (though in 2021, it was done remotely). I decided to attend, in part to get to know the guys a little more and support what they are doing, but also because this year, they had a special guest: former Hanshin Tigers lefty, Sawamura Award winner Kei Igawa. WOW! How did they swing that? “I asked the OB club, and I specifically wanted Igawa to come because he and I are the same age,” said Tigers Cast founder Masatoshi “Sennen” Sennenbara.
I arrived at Lateral Osaka around 15 minutes early, and saw some familiar faces in the audience. I was also recognized by a few as well. It was very Tigers Cast-like, with a survey from which the cast would read audience answers during the show. They talked about the season, the game of the year, the MVP pitcher and hitter, and more. After a brief intermission, the guest of honour came out to thunderous applause.
Kei Igawa might not have seemed very physically imposing during his playing days, but at 6’1½“ (186 cm) and 205 lbs (93 kg), he certainly dwarfs most Japanese, especially on this night. “He’s huge. His thighs must be five times as big as mine,” a starstruck Tomoro said afterward. “But his kindness helped me to feel relaxed up there even though I was quite nervous at first.”
Igawa answered all kinds of questions from the cast as well as the audience. Some of the questions were very specific: “Do you still have the wallet you got from your mother in junior high that you lost 4 times?” Others were related to the current Tigers situation…
“What did you think about manager Okada when you played under him?”
“He loves the game and sees a lot of its finer points. His scope of vision is so wide. He was a farm coach in my rookie year so when he moved up to manager it was really easy to play for him. One time on the farm I was struggling with my control and when I came back to the bench, he said, “Next inning, throw nothing but off-speed stuff. Don’t worry about the results.” I went out there and somehow held them off the scoreboard. When I got back to the dugout he said, “See? You can shut them down even with the pitches you don’t have confidence in!” Normally, he’s pretty hands-off with pitchers but his advice in this situation was perfect and it gave me even more confidence in him as a manager.”
“How do you think Shintaro Fujinami will fare if he goes to the majors?”
“It will depend on which team signs him and whether they can be patient in the process. As long as he signs with a team that doesn’t expect instant results, he’ll be fine. He’s got such great velocity on his fastball. Hopefully, he plays in a pitchers’ park but most of those teams have all the pitching they need. If the team needs more, I’d say the Dodgers are a good fit. The Padres too but they have a lot of pitching. I’d say the west coast will suit him better than the east. It’s not just about the level of play but the pressure as well. It would be advantageous for him to sign with a National League west coast team. It’s all going to come down to whether the team will take good care of him and be patient with him and give him a fair chance. I’d rather see him as a starter than a reliever. Relievers are treated as disposable commodities and the burden is heavy, whereas starters are given a lot more care.”
On the whole, it was a glorious night, which included hanging out with the cast afterwards (Igawa was not present, unfortunately). It has also inspired me, just as it did in the podcasting realm, to give this talk show thing a try and see if I can make it a fun part of what H-TEN does to spread a fierce love of the Tigers across the globe.