[Congratulations! Juku High School Baseball Club Koshien Victory] [On the Koshien Victory] The Essence of Enjoy Baseball

2023/10/11

My first encounter with the phrase "Enjoy Baseball," which the Juku High School Baseball Club continued to promote as they won the National High School Baseball Championship for the second time in 107 years, dates back about 40 years to when I was a member of the university baseball club. In 1982, during my junior year, Manager Yukichi Maeda was appointed as the manager of the Keio University Baseball Club for his second term. He immediately raised questions about bad customs that were common in the baseball world at the time, such as extreme mentalism and strict hierarchies. Citing the golden age triggered by Manager Hisashi Koshimoto's pre-war tour of the United States, he taught us that the tradition of the Juku Baseball Club was American-style. He likely sought to rebuild the then-slumping baseball club by returning to its origins—revisiting the Juku Baseball Club's traditions and looking back at the true nature of sports.

In that sense, the second trip to the U.S. mainland in the history of the Keio University Baseball Club in March 1983 was inevitable. In an era when it was difficult even to get information about the Major Leagues, everything about the play of American college students was fresh. Manager Maeda, who told those around him, "We are going because we are weak and want to become strong," was likely looking for a catalyst to strengthen the team. The daily exhibition games began with both managers and the umpires gathering near home plate, exchanging lineups, confirming ground rules, and shaking hands firmly while saying, "Let’s enjoy!" That moment, the word "enjoy" likely struck a chord with the baseball Manager Maeda aimed for—or rather, the baseball of the Juku. Naming the baseball club's philosophy "Enjoy Baseball" after returning to Japan must have been a moment of true realization for him. That spirit, though expressed differently at times, was passed down through successive managers of the Juku Baseball Club. At the same time, I believe it took root in the Juku High School Baseball Club through Mr. Makoto Ueda, Manager Moribayashi's predecessor. Thanks to those efforts, after 40 years, "Enjoy Baseball" was recognized this summer as the synonym for KEIO baseball in both name and reality.

However, based on the reactions from the media and public opinion, I do not necessarily feel that Manager Maeda's true intentions have been conveyed to the world. He strongly urged that to enjoy, one must: 1) Do your best, 2) Be considerate of your teammates, and 3) Devise your own ways. It is a simple yet truly noble philosophy. I myself challenge that state of mind with my students every day, but I am still only halfway to my goal. About a year and a half ago, I was sent a video of a practice session at the Juku High School. In a downpour, players were desperately hitting tosses thrown by an elderly former professional baseball master coach. With every ball hit, the splashing droplets—were they the falling rain, sweat, or perhaps tears? Eventually, the ground beneath the players and the coach became completely flooded.