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| JOE TAKES HIS HACKS BENEATH HISTORIC OSAKA CASTLE |
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| JOE BOUNCED BACK TO THE PITCHER, FURTHER EVIDENCE THAT HE SHOULD KEEP HIS DAY JOB AS A JOURNALIST! |
Designed by an orthopedic hand surgeon, patented Bionic Gloves are ergonomically designed for maximum comfort and performance.
Baseball's past, present, and future are ready for you to
see and be part of at the Louisville Slugger Museum & Factory.
Many fans have always wondered,
which country has the best talent? The U.S., Dominican Republic, Venezuela…Japan.
The Japanese won the inaugural World Baseball Classic and you can learn more about the history of baseball in Japan in
The World in a Ballpark: Baseball Goes Global, which
is available for purchase at the Buy Joe's Guides page.
If you’re planning a trip during Japan’s
regular season to see all of its ballparks, The Ultimate Japanese Ballpark Experience
is the guide for you, and
it’s also available for purchase at the Buy Joe's Guides page.
If you're curious about the
above photo, Joe happened upon a pick-up game taking place beneath the Osaka Castle (you can see a small portion of the
castle in the upper left hand corner of the picture) one weekday morning in Osaka, which has been home to two
Japanese professional teams, the Hanshin Tigers and the Orix Buffaloes.
We hope you enjoy this collage of Japanese
baseball!
| A BASEBALL GAME IN JAPAN IS CAUSE FOR CELEBRATION |
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| CARP FANS AT HIROSHIMA STADIUM ENJOY A SATURDAY NIGHT TILT AGAINST THE YOMUIRI GIANTS |
To say that the Japanese love their baseball would be an understatement.
They're freaking nuts!
Going to a Japanese baseball game is like attending a carnival or a big party.
Everyone's happily making lots of noise. Everyone's smiling. Everyone's is a good mood.
As you see in these two photos below, "cheer squads" are a huge part of Japanese
baseball. The Chiba Lotte Marines have the largest and most vocal cheer squad. Up until 2005, they were the Cubs
of Japan. They hadn't won the pennant in decades! But in 2005, the Marines won it all, erasing past frustrations just
like the Red Sox and White Sox have done.
| STANDING, CLAPPING, CHEERING, STANDING, CLAPPING.. |
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| ..CHEERING. THE CHIBA LOTTE MARINES, NO LONGER PENNANT-DEPRIVED, HAVE THE LARGEST PEP SQUAD |
| STRIKE A POSE, THERE'S NOTHING TO IT... |
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| ...JOE HAVING SOME FUN IN THE BLEACHERS AT THE TOKYO DOME WITH HIS JAPANESE FRIENDS |
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| NO MONKEYING AROUND, THIS ONE BELOW IS UNCAGED! |
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| IN THE HILLS OF AHORI PARK, OSAKA. ABOVE RIGHT, A "TUFFY RHODES SUSHI BOX LUNCH" - 10,000 YEN, KIDDO |
| IN TUFFY, THEY TRUST: THE FORMER CUB IS BIG... |
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| ...IN THE LAND OF THE RISING SUN - FOR HIS BIG SMILE AND EVEN BIGGER BAT |
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