Day One – February 21, 2024
All Aboard! The great Okinawan adventure has begun! We left the hotel after breakfast and headed down to Itoman, the southernmost city on Okinawa Island. The Chiba Lotte Marines were working out on the main field at Nishizaki Sports Facility, and look who we got to see up close and personal! Roki Sasaki looks even more imposing in person than he does on TV! After wiping the drool from our chins from seeing him play catch, field grounders, and more, we headed back to Chatan, where we took in the Marines (minus Roki) facing the host Chunichi Dragons. It was a lopsided victory for the home team.
Our welcome dinner was a feast that gave us a not-so-subtle hint: get your steps in during the day so you can feast without feeling too guilty! A delicious spread of Italian cuisine with a slight Okinawan twist on it!
Day Two — February 22, 2024
Despite it being a mid-February day, the mercury rose to around 26C (80F) by mid-day. We left the hotel on the bus for the first time together and enjoyed the view of the beautiful Okinawan as we headed north to Nago City – home of the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters’ spring training facility. We arrived and went almost directly to the backstop of the main field. While watching BP, Marideth was able to call out to one of her favorite ex-Nationals, Andrew Stephenson and tell him that his fans in Washington miss him.
We were then greeted by Matt Winters, who is an international scout and former all-star slugger for the team. He spent the better part of an hour sitting with us and talking about everything under the sun (while we baked in the sun). He answered every question from our crew, gave us each a special Fighters spring training cap, and signed autographs for Steve, who had several of his cards with him.
Lunch allowed everyone to check off a few boxes on the official tour scavenger hunt (a new tradition started on this tour!): Eat some authentic Okinawan cuisine. Okinawa soba (noodles in soup) was the most popular choice, but some also tried squid-ink soba, tuna sashimi on rice, and other delicacies.
We hopped back on the bus and reached the world-famous Churaumi Aquarium in Motobu, northwest of Nago. It boasts the largest aquarium window in the world, at 22.5 meters (73.8 feet) by 8.2 meters (26.9 feet)! It also had a shark museum and a chance to touch starfish, among other things.
Dinner was a free-for-all, but many chose to go out together and try more Okinawan food or other things. On the whole, it was a full, memorable first full day!
Day Three — February 23, 2024
This morning, everyone had a little more extra time than usual. Some used it for exercising, others for getting to know each other better. We took the bus down to Okinawa Cellular Stadium Naha to see the Yomiuri Giants host the Hanshin Tigers. On that trip, Trevor retold the infamous Curse of the Colonel story, which explained why the Tigers drought lasted 38 years. He then explained a little of the rivalry between the two teams, and by the time he was done talking, we were at the ballpark!
While there, we all got ballpark food at the stands outside the stadium, and then entered with plenty of time to spare. The Giants stormed out to a 7-0 lead in the first inning! Though the Tigers struggled to make a game of it, they did hit two home runs – Teruaki Sato hit one that almost left the premises, and Johan Mieses scored the game’s final run on a solo shot in the top of the eighth – in a game that ended with the home team winning 9-4.
We then hopped back on the bus and took a little tour of an awamori distillery. Awamori is a strong local liqueur made of rice that has an interesting production process and taste. The guide told us that because of how it is made, it is akin to whiskey more than it is Japanese sake. We got to sample some different flavors before we headed back to the hotel.
Once again, the weather was great, with partly cloudy skies and a high of around 23C (73F).
Day Four — February 24, 2024
Breakfast has been a really satisfying time for the team to eat some good food and get to know each other. Today was no exception.
We got to our destination – ANA Ball Park Urasoe – at 11:30 am and grabbed some pre-game food. We stopped at the #Tsubakuro (Tokyo Yakult Swallows mascot) shrine and gave some MLB merchandise to young fans we saw.
When we got into the ballpark, we were treated to a pitchers’ duel. The lone run of the game was scored on a Swallows 5-4-3 double play in the bottom of the first inning. The rival Hanshin Tigers managed just one hit, though, against the home team’s arsenal of hurlers.
We received a short visit from Trevor’s friend, former Tigers outfielder Tsutomu Kameyama, who signed autographs and took pictures with the group. Did you know that he was the manager of Team Japan in 1999 when they won the Little League World Series?
We spent more time mingling with fans after the game and were surprised at the variety of hometowns they had from all across Japan! Not many were local Okinawa residents, but we did get to talk to a few of them, as well.
Our post-game excursion was to Shuri Castle, a World Heritage Site in Naha City. Though it was burned down in a 2019 fire, it is under reconstruction and the group was able to see how it is being put back together, as well as some beautiful views of the castle walls as well as the surrounding city.
Day Five — February 25, 2024
Today saw us travel the least of any other day on the tour. We slept in and left the hotel at 11:00 am to walk (!) to our ballpark for the day – Agre Stadium Chatan. Many folks left the hotel earlier and spent the morning pursuing other leisure activities. Who would have known that morning would provide us the most comfortable weather we’d see all day.
The Chunichi Dragons played host to the Hanshin Tigers, so we started our day sitting in the outfield grassy zone with the Dragons’ cheering squad. To our amazement, they only had five people rousing the crowd, but one of them spoke English, so we were able to talk with him a little. The Dragons allowed the game’s first run but scored four in return in the middle innings to win comfortably, 4-1.
As the game went on, though, the winds picked up and it even drizzled some, making it a little uncomfortable to stick around until the end of the game, especially in comparison with the beautiful weather we had been getting to this point on the tour. After the game’s final out, we made our way to a pub near our hotel called Koshien Stadium Okinawa. The owner was a baseball player in high school and achieved his dream by making it to the national tournament. Anyhow, we said farewell to Trevor at this Happy Hour, but also welcomed Takahiro “Taka” Kaneko, who is with the group through the end of the tour.
(Side note: I (Trevor aka @hanshintigersenglishnews) had an absolutely amazing time on this tour. On other tours, I basically joined partway through and left before it ended. This time, I felt like I got to know everyone little by little, and I have made friends with nine new people thanks to this opportunity. It was more than a job – it was a precious experience. Thanks once again to all the fine folks who embarked on this maiden voyage of the Okinawa Tour with JapanBall!)
Day Six — February 26, 2024
No baseball activities today. Got an early start for a history and cultural tour of the island with emphasis on WWII.
Local guide Urasoe-san stated that there are 30 military bases on the island with Kadena Air Base the largest U.S miltary installation in the Far East. I have definitely noticed the presence of the military in just a couple of days.
First stop was Tsushima-maru Memorial Museum in Naha. On August 22, 1944, the Tsushima-maru with 1,788 passengers (mostly children) was sunk by a US submarine with 80% casualties. As we were leaving the museum, a survivor on the ship was standing by the front entrance talking to an employee. The man said he was 4 years old when the ship sank and he was too young to remember what happened.
After a quick lunch break at Wafu Tei Hamby Town, we toured Haebaru Town Museum, Haemaru Bunker #20, and the Okinawa Prefectural Peace Memorial Museum. A very sad chapter in the history of the country.
The goal for the children in Okinawa is to make the Tsushima-maru a Signpost to Peace.
– Reported by Steve Ikeda (@summitfuji2014)
Day Seven — February 27, 2024
Our last stop in Spring Training was in Okinawa City to see the last workout of the Hiroshima Carp before they head back to Hiroshima. Koza Shinkan Ballpark has my vote for the nicest ST facility – beautiful, well laid out and comfortable seats with backs.
Observations: The workouts were very structured and organized. Every player seemed to have a prescribed routine.
Players of note who have donned the Carp uniform include Hiroki Kuroda and Kenta Maeda who pitched for the LA Dodgers and current Cubs OF Seiya Suzuki.
We ended with a hosted farewell dinner at Tansaibo restaurant, a short walk from our hotel. It was a delicious meal of various Okinawa specialties capped off with the simple dessert of fresh fruit.
– Reported by Steve Ikeda (@summitfuji2014)
