Hanshin Tigers experience in the 3rd Base Alps v Hiroshima Carp - 16/05
Just an absolutely unbelievable experience on Saturday, a real bucket list item ticked. I loved every single second of it and feel very privileged to have secured a ticket through 'special ticket for foreign visitors'. As a baseball fan this very much felt like something of a pilgrimage.
It's a shame others in that section didn't feel the same.
The guy next to me left after the 4th inning and never returned. The majority of that section (which was clearly all the 'foreign' tickets grouped together) left by the 8th inning, and it's not like the game was settled as it was 3-0 at this point and Hiroshima very nearly got a tie in the 9th. With the whole stadium staying behind for the post-match celebrations, it was just me and one other guy in a Dodgers hat surrounded by empty seats in our section.
While some people did get into the experience, get decked out in merch etc a lot of them seemed to have no interest at all in the actual game and spent the whole time talking about where they'd been on their trip or Googling places for dinner in Osaka. One guy was just shouting "I don't know what's going on!" every time the crowd cheered.
I get that people want to tick it off and have probably been influenced into going. I also get that a lot of people will also be watching baseball for the first time, or have limited knowledge of the sport, and maybe this will turn them into baseball fans. No problem wanting to be there for the experience, which is incredible in itself.
However, these tickets are like gold dust. I know genuine hardcore baseball fans who have been unable to get Hanshin tickets when visiting Japan, and no doubt missed out to these people as well. I was very lucky to get a ticket myself as the site showed 'sold out' right after I purchased. The idea of having gone through all that just to leave half way through is baffling to me.
It's great that so many people want to experience Japanese baseball, and nobody should be a gatekeeper, but somewhere like Tokyo Swallows is a much better place to get a 'casual' intro while not taking up a seat.
If you do get a ticket for Hanshin Tigers but aren't so interested in baseball, please at least stick around for the whole day and make an effort to get involved!