As Japan begins to ease out of its state of emergency, the way people talk about the coronavirus pandemic has changed as well.
Opening Day is now 24 days away, but it only took one day after announcing the June 19 start date to go from “Shucks. We are too busy to consider fans in the stands during this time of crisis” to “Hopefully, we’ll be able to have up to 5,000 per game at parks starting from July 10.”
Baseball addicts
And while Japanese society places some constraints on what teams say and do, that doesn’t mean Nippon Professional Baseball team owners don’t act like arrogant jerks.
The sudden reversal from “everything is about safety so we can’t be bothered to think about fans (income)” to “everything’s going to be normal soon so let’s make up for our losses” reminded me of my experience with a meth addict.
When put in charge of a trust overseeing a meth addict’s inheritance 12 years ago, no day was complete without an e-mail or phone call filled with threats, assorted insults and lies about he and another beneficiary were in total agreement of how I was screwing them both over.
When that phase of my work was done, and the addict’s inheritance was now in the hands of the beneficiary who had been his supposed ally, the addict was now my eternal ally in the cause against the other party’s reign of terror over HIS money.
What that has to do with NPB team owners is that this year has shown how they have adapted their language to suit the needs of their audience.
When Japan’s government was talking in March about Tokyo would be a safe host for the Summer Olympics in July 2020, the coronavirus was something that was going to be over soon, probably in April. NPB owners responded on March 12 by pushing Opening Day back from March 20 to April 10. After all, the government had said schools should be reopening by then so it should be no trouble holding baseball games.
Twelve days later, after the Olympics were put on ice, the owners did make a slight miscalculation, announcing that April 24 would be their new Opening Day — not because they knew something about the coronavirus that we didn’t but because that day would allow them to play 143 games including interleague, an all-star series, postseason league playoffs and a Japan Series.
The decision was ridiculed, rightly so. With teams still traveling around Japan playing practice games, three Hanshin Tigers tested positive after becoming exposed to the virus at a postgame dinner party at a friend’s home.
The owners learned their lesson and stopped announcing dates, saying they were now depending on government guidelines and the advice of experts. So while major league owners sounded like morons, speaking of seasons played in Grapefruit and Cactus league parks, NPB’s owners began to sound like adults.
That process continued as commissioner Atsushi Saito outlined the detailed plans that were being drawn up to keep players safe if and when the season did start. When Japan lifted the last states of emergency on May 25, Saito used all the right language.
And even when NPB secretary general Atsushi Ihara said Tuesday that fans could be in the park by July 10, he added, “But we will follow the government guidelines and proceed on the advice of experts.” This is something NPB has done, except in the early stages when the Central League owners were eager to push forward and ignore the advice of experts.
Not quite a game but Sasaki hits 160
Roki Sasaki has yet to pitch in a game since he turned pro with the Lotte Marines, but he pitched in a simulated game on Tuesday. Immediately after being taken deep, he responded with two-straight 160 kph deliveries and a three-pitch strikeout.
We’re talking about practice
NPB announced it’s practice game schedule for each team on Wednesday. You can find it HERE in my Japan Baseball Guide section.
Villanueva out
The Nikkan Sports has reported that former San Diego Padres third baseman Christian Villanueva has undergone an appendectomy according to an announcement by the Pacific League club.
With Opening Day set for June 19, it appears Villanueva, who played 73 games for the Central League’s Yomiuri Giants in 2019 will not be ready when the season starts.
