Stepping Up to the Plate: Kids Day Steals the Show at Japan Championship

2024.11.05

Kids Day held at the Japan Championship A special moment at Kyocera Dome Osaka Amateur Baseball NOW vol.45

On November 2nd and 3rd, the first weekend since the opening of the 49th Japan Amateur Baseball Championship, an event for children was held at Kyocera Dome Osaka called “JABA Kids Baseball Day.” . On the field where adult baseball players were competing passionately, many children who had come through open recruitment programs had a special time.

The grounds were opened early in the morning on the 2nd. The first game was scheduled to start at 10 a.m., so it started after 7 a.m., but the children were full of energy from the morning. Their eyes lit up from the moment the entrance door opened, and they got active by playing tee batting, parent-child catch, and base running. They also got to experience the mounds used by professional baseball players and professional baseball players, which they are not normally able to climb. They made memories in various ways, such as shadow pitching with powerful form and taking photos.

= After-school baseball players who participated in the “7-minute knock showdown”

Chasing the ball hard in the “7-minute knockout showdown”

On the 3rd, “Steel Engine” and “Kansai Afterschool Baseball Exchange Association TSUNAG”, which are sponsoring the Japan Championship, played a central role in holding a “7-minute knockout showdown” between afterschool baseball teams. On this day as well, six teams participated from early morning and eagerly followed the balls hit by their coaches. Rensho Nishioka, a 6-year member of the Minamitanabe Shields softball baseball team in Higashi-Sumiyoshi Ward, Osaka City, said, “It was a lot of fun to be able to come with everyone.The good thing about baseball is that you can have fun playing with your teammates.You can hit and run. “I want to continue to play baseball with as much energy as I did today, aiming to become a player like Hanshin’s Koji Chikamoto.” Participating teams watched the game after the event and enjoyed the high-level play of adult baseball and the cheering battles that echoed through the stadium.

= Rei Hatano pitches the ceremonial first pitch to her father, who plays catcher.

= Daiki Asano pitching the first pitch

Six people participated in the kids’ first pitch ceremony and performed back flips.

A “kids’ first pitch ceremony” was also held for the six games on both days, with four elementary school students and two middle school students participating. There were a variety of students, some playing baseball and others working hard at other sports, but all of them threw the ball with all their might.

Toki Hamada, a first-year junior high school student who started playing baseball in junior high school, said, “I was nervous and don’t remember much about the feel of the mound, but I was really happy to be able to throw from the mound.In the future, I want to be a polite baseball player.” He smiled. Daiki Asano, a fourth-year elementary school student, said, “When I stood on the mound, home plate was farther away than I expected. I was surprised at how big the players’ hands were when they shook my hand.” Kokone Nakamura, a third-year elementary school student who has been learning gymnastics since she was little, also performed a series of back flips as she pulled up from the mound. It surprised not only the spectators but also the players who were watching up close.

In addition, cheer dance by the Orix Buffaloes professional baseball team cheered the venue up. It was a day at Kyocera Dome Osaka, where children’s voices were louder than usual.[Mainichi Shimbun Baseball Committee, Yuka Nakamura]