INDEX
Interview with Ryota Igarashi, who expressed his feelings
Celeina: Mr. Kumagai, I heard that you once interviewed Ryota Igarashi, an alumnus of the Yakult Swallows who will appear on this program tomorrow.
Kumagai: I was very impressed with the interview, and I was sharing my thoughts and feelings with him. I brought clippings from old newspapers and magazines that had featured Mr. Igarashi, and Mr. Igarashi told me how much he missed him, and even had his picture taken.
Takano: When you see your favorite player from long ago in front of you, even though it is your job, you get a thrill …….
Kumagai: I usually don’t get nervous during interviews, but I was extremely nervous. I spent a lot of time preparing for the interview.
Takano: That must have been very passionate. We are also meeting Mr. Igarashi tomorrow. Is there any trivia we should know about him?
Kumagai: Mr. Igarashi is known as the “Kim Taku” of the baseball world, and he is a handsome player. He is known for his fastball, and it is said that the reason for his fastball is his lower body, which he trained while skiing as a child. I heard that you were born in Hokkaido and that you were involved in skiing at that time.
Takano: So the environment had an influence. It is interesting that skiing and baseball are connected. Are you prepared for our meeting tomorrow?
Kumagai: Mr. Igarashi appeared on TV a lot as a commentator for this year’s WBC, and he is an expert not only on Yakult, but also on professional baseball, Major League Baseball, and baseball in general. I think it will make the program more interesting.
Takano: We’d like to learn from him as well.
Celeina: Thank you very much.
Takano: Lastly, I heard that you have a favorite way of watching a game.
Kumagai: Yakult has a cheering style where they wave umbrellas with the “Tokyo Ondo” when a point is scored, and they also wave these umbrellas at the lucky seven in the bottom of the 7th inning. I personally think that there are many games that get more exciting towards the end of the 7th inning. For example, even if you are losing, you can enjoy the game by getting back into the game in the bottom of the 7th inning by swinging your umbrella and trying to turn the game around, or if you are winning, you can enjoy the game by getting back into the game and scoring more runs. Also, in July and August, there will be fireworks after the bottom of the 5th inning.
Celeina: We saw them too.
Kumagai: Fireworks, beer, and Tokyo Ondo. I think these are the three sacred treasures of summer, and I hope you will experience them at Jingu Stadium.
Celeina: Thank you very much. This week on “FIST BUMP,” we have a Yakult fan who has been a fan of the Yakult Swallows since he was six years old, and today we welcome Yohei Kumagai, an editor who has been a fan of the Swallows since he was six years old. Thank you very much.
Kumagai: Thank you very much.
GRAND MARQUEE
J-WAVE (81.3FM) Mon-Thu 16:00 – 18:50
Navigator: Shinya Takano, Celeina Ann
