I'm spending the second day in a row in my apartment, holed up with a runny nose. On the telly is the final of the summer national high school baseball tournament between Komadai from Hokkaido and Waseda from Tokyo. Sounds very amateur, but it's far from that. Obviously it's not professional, but the standard of play, the media coverage and the level of interest is on the same plain. At first I was surprised to see that the matches are held at Hanshin Koshien Stadium, home to the Hanshin Tigers, Osaka’s baseball heroes. But then I read that Koshien was actually built in 1936 for the very purpose of the national high school competition. Even though the Tigers call Koshien home, they must give way to the high school kids if necessary.

Take note of the name Saito Yuki. Saito-kun is the star pitcher for Waseda Jitsugyo and, I imagine, a future star of Japanese pro-baseball…and who knows? Japan has exported several players to the American Major League – most famously Matsui of the New York Yankees and Ichiro of the Seattle Mariners. Modest and cool-headed Saito-kun has been consistently pitching fastballs at the same speed as the pros (at times, almost 150 km/h) for 5 days straight. In yesterday's match he only gave away one run from 170 pitches. Today’s game is actually a rematch after yesterday's drew out to 15 innings with still only 1 run a piece. So, the other team's pitcher, Tanaka Masahiro, is also one to watch. These guys, only 18, are now national celebrities, with news stories devoted to their pitched battle. Amazing performances, considering the weight of expectation with millions watching (ratings peaked at 37%).

I ummed and ahhed about going to the game today (Koshien would only take about an hour 15 mins to get to) but I now regret to say that my "better" judgement won. The atmosphere coming from the TV is almost electric, so I can only try and imagine what it’s like there… 45 odd thousand people chanting, including fanatical legions of fans keeping up a constant chorus of frenzied singing (a lot faster than English soccer singing) with brass bands, drums, cheerleaders… and because it isn’t professional, good seats are cheap and outfield seats are free! But, the thought of sitting in the open on a 30+ degrees day with a cold made me rethink… I wish I hadn’t been so sensible, it looks so amazing! But yeah, I don’t get sick leave and I have no holidays left, so I can't afford to stay sick. (Did you know it’s poor manners to blow your nose in public in Japan? Very frustrating when copped with hayfever or a cold… yet occasionally I see people pick their noses on the train and once or twice urinate in the street!)

Anyway, I'll finish with the final score once I know it:
Sugoi!!! Amazing!!! Waseda won in the 9th innings, 4-3. The last pitches saw Tanaka-kun face Saito-kun, but he struck out. Saito-kun had been cool as a cucumber until their victory lap – then he started crying. People have been crying all through this competition, from the stands and the field, winners and losers. I’m not crying, but here’s my verdict: possibly the best game I've ever watched. Why didn't I go!? Loser!