Hanshin Koshien Stadium is 100 years old this year and still serves as the home for Japan’s second-oldest professional team, the Hanshin Tigers, as well as the two primary high school tournaments: the Japanese High School Baseball Invitational Tournament each spring and the famed Koshien National High School Championship Tournament in the summer.
Commonly referred to simply as Koshien Stadium, it has been called the “sacred ground of baseball.” Players traditionally bow before entering and leaving, and players on the losing team in any high school game there are allowed to collect handfuls of dirt as souvenirs.
Fans can learn all about the stadium’s history (spoiler: the stadium was built for high school baseball, not professional baseball, which didn’t exist in Japan at the time of construction) by visiting the Hanshin Koshien Stadium Museum next door at Koshien Plus. Other places of interest near the stadium can enhance the gameday experience or even give you a taste of the ballpark’s rich history and character on a non-gameday outing.
The Museum of Hanshin Koshien Stadium
First, let’s talk about the museum. It offers an in-depth look at the facility and the histories of the Hanshin Tigers and high school baseball.
The museum is divided into the “Plus Area” and the “Stadium Area”. The Plus Area primarily focuses on the Hanshin Tigers, with separate sections focusing on the Tigers’ championship years and their most well-known players. The end of the Plus Area hosts several interactive activities, including a simulated draft meeting and a 360-degree experience of the stadium through Virtual Reality.
The Stadium Area is comprised of the High School Baseball Zone, highlighting Japanese high school baseball and its connection to Koshien, and the Hanshin Koshien Stadium Zone, which covers the history of the stadium itself.
The High School Zone covers the beginnings of high school baseball and displays the first ball used in the first high school baseball game in 1915. Other sections include the “Ball Wall,” a glass-encased wall of 4,253 baseballs – equal to the number of member high schools in the Japan High School Baseball Federation. The names of schools that have made it to the Koshien Tournament are each engraved on a ball.
The Stadium Area also includes displays featuring signed gloves, pictures, and videos of Japanese Major League Baseball players from their Koshien days. The area highlights the important role that Koshien occupies in the players’ careers.
Visitors next reach the Stadium Zone, where they find various examples of manga that use Koshien as the setting. Next, they see handwritten scoreboard player name plates and Hall-of-Fame inductee plaques before arriving at the Back Screen View, located directly below the stadium’s scoreboard with a great view of the entire stadium.
After going through the museum, there is also a fun interactive stop — the Be-Stadium Koshien on the second floor of Koshien Plus. The game displays the ball one hits or throws on a large screen showing the stadium, making the person feel as if he or she is actually playing at the stadium. Both batting and pitching setups are available.
To get an idea of what a visit to the museum is like, check out the videos on this site. And this site has a lot of photos.
Location, Hours, and Admission
The museum is located next to the stadium, and visitors can reach it by heading to the left from the stadium entrance. To get to Koshien Stadium, take an express or limited express train from Hanshin Osaka-Umeda Station to Koshien Station on the Hanshin Main Line. From there, it takes just a couple of minutes to walk to the stadium – follow the signs or, if it’s a gameday, follow the yellow-and-black-clad fans.
It is open from 10am – 5pm from November through February and from 10am – 6pm otherwise. The last admission is 30 minutes prior to closing time. It is closed during the New Year’s holiday period and on Mondays, except when games and public holidays fall on Mondays. Lockers are available for visitors to store personal belongings.
Entry fees are very affordable: 900 yen for adults (700 if in a group), 700 yen for high school students (500 if in a group), and 500 yen for children four years old through junior high age (400 if in a group).
Stadium Tours
In addition, visitors can take guided stadium tours, during which they can see up-close areas such as the bullpens and benches and also observe players during pre-game practices and warm-up sessions. During the tour, one can also enjoy exclusive Augmented Reality (AR) content on a tablet or smartphone.
Stadium tour fees are 2000 yen for adults (1600 if in a group), 1800 (1400 if in a group) for high school students and 1400 (1100 if in a group) for children four years old through junior high age.
Now, let’s move on to attractions near the stadium.
Babe Ruth Monument, Tigers, Shrine, and More
To begin with, there is the Babe Ruth Monument at Mizuno Square, on the northwest perimeter grounds of the stadium. The plaque recognizes Ruth’s visit to Japan with a team of American all-stars following the 1934 season. Ruth and his teammates, which included greats such as Earl Averill, Lou Gehrig, Charlie Gehringer, Lefty Gomez, Connie Mack, Jimmie Foxx, and Moe Berg, played a series of games throughout Japan, including games at Koshien and Meiji Jingu Stadium. Koshien and Jingu, along with Fenway Park and Wrigley Field, are the only active professional ballparks that Ruth played at.
Then there is the Susano Shrine, which is also referred to as the Koshien Shrine or Tigers Shrine. Located on the south side of the stadium grounds, fans can go there to pray for the Hanshin Tigers to do well. In the traditional Shinto style, there is a place of purification as one comes into the area, along with a statue of a giant baseball inscribed by former Tigers manager Senichi Hoshino.
Want to load up on merch before entering the ballpark? Just across the street from the stadium is the Beat Tamashii Shop, which sells interesting items for the hardcore Tigers fan. It’s a unique team shop because rather than selling officially licensed goods focusing on the players, they sell fan-inspired merchandise.
Another place to shop for souvenirs is Tiger Goods “Tora Tora,” which offers a massive variety of Tigers merchandise. To get to it, go out of Koshien directly behind the museum entrance, and you’ll see the Lalaport Koshien shopping mall. Follow the road south past the mall, and Tiger Goods “Tora Tora” will be on the same side of the road.
Finally, within walking distance of the stadium, we recommend a few places for pre or postgame libations or victuals:
- G Love is a classy, baseball-themed bar. If you’re lucky, you’ll see the bar’s owner, the hall-of-famer and stolen base king, Yutaka Fukumoto!
- Pizzeria da Torachici offers good pizza and a welcoming atmosphere for fans.
- The ubiquitous Lawson’s convenience store chain has a Hanshin Tigers-themed store not far from the stadium. We recommend the pork cutlet or egg salad sandwiches!
Note: Thank you to Trevor Raichura of Hanshin Tigers English News for many of these suggestions, found in the “Around Koshien” section of his website.
